The claim: President #Trump will invoke the Stafford Act to order a national, mandatory two-week quarantine?
From a USA Today article: “A recent viral post on Facebook claims that the president of the United States would enact a mandatory quarantine using a law called the Stafford Act. “The president will evoke what is called the Stafford act,” Facebook user Jasmine Morgan wrote on March 16. “The president will order a two week mandatory quarantine for the nation.”
What’s the Stafford Act
On March 13, Trump declared a national emergency under the 1988 Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. Under the Stafford Act, about $40 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency can be used by the federal government to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
The declaration of emergency also allows the federal government to waive certain regulations on health care providers so that resources can be deployed faster. This power is again derived from the Stafford Act, which was enacted by Congress to ensure that states would have a way of signaling for aid from the federal government in times of crisis.
The Verdict: False
According to the USA Today the claim that Trump will invoke the Stafford Act to order a national, mandatory two-week quarantine FALSE because it is not supported by research.
The president arguably has considerable authority in times of national crisis. The specific powers granted by the Stafford Act, however, do not provide the president or the federal government the authority to order a national quarantine. It is unclear if such power is provided by other federal laws. But current laws and the constitutional scheme, which reserves certain powers for the states, suggests that the power to order quarantines is left to state, local and tribal authorities.
@DavidSecurity reminding you to Stay Safe and be Healthy!
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