Debunked: Government to Nationalize Food Supply

[MikeG]

An article appeared in Natural News on 26 August with the headline:

“Why did Obama nationalize the U.S. food supply with executive order 13603?”

http://www.naturalnews.com/050940_Obama_executive_orders_food_supply.html

In March 2012, President Obama quietly signed an Executive Order that has major implications should some sort of national emergency arise, such as enabling the federal government to take over management and distribution of all food, water and other resources.

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Author J.D. Heyes starts the article by claiming that:

In issuing the order, EO 13603, titled, "National Defense Resources Preparedness," Obama claimed authority under the Defense Production Act of 1950, a Korean War-era statute (50 U.S.C.) (see it here) that gives the government the power to marshal whatever resources are necessary to protect and defend the country during "military conflicts, natural or man-caused disasters, or acts of terrorism within the United States," the statute says.

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Interestingly the link provided by Heyes, which is a 2009 update of the original law, actually debunks his statement from the start:

Sec. 2. DECLARATION OF POLICY [50 U.S.C. App. § 2062] (a) Findings

Congress finds that—


(1) the security of the United States is dependent on the ability of the domestic industrial base to supply materials and services for the national defense and to prepare for and respond to military conflicts, natural or man-caused disasters, or acts of terrorism within the United States; [my emphasis]

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In other words, the actual language does not address the authority to do anything. It is describing a need.

Later on, Heyes refines his claim by stating that the Executive Order and the Defense Production Act allows the federal government to take food from Americans.

If you like your food, you can't keep it

Among other things, the order directs various federal agencies and government officials to "identify requirements for the full spectrum of emergencies, including essential military and civilian demand," and "assess on an ongoing basis the capability of the domestic industrial and technological base to satisfy requirements in peacetime and times of national emergency, specifically evaluating the availability of the most critical resource and production sources, including subcontractors and suppliers, materials, skilled labor, and professional and technical personnel."

In addition, the order directs government agencies "to take actions necessary to ensure the availability of adequate resources and production capability, including services and critical technology, for national defense requirements."

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Heyes also mentions that “food resources” are featured in EO 13603. Toward the end of the article he segues to a blog post by “radio personality” Dave Hodges, who:

noted the order's emphasis on the confiscation of all "food resources," which are defined in the order as "all commodities and products, (simple, mixed, or compound), or complements to such commodities or products, that are capable of being ingested by either human beings or animals, irrespective of other uses to which such commodities or products may be put..."

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http://www.thecommonsenseshow.com/2...-force-millions-of-americans-into-fema-camps/

It was probably more useful for Heyes to use another conspiracy website as a source because the actual documents don’t come close to his conclusions.

The material he uses in Natural News offers the first tip off. Look at the actual phrasing and you see “identify requirements” and “assess on an ongoing basis.” These reflect typical intradepartmental planning objectives and are hardly draconian measures by any account.

A detailed examination of EO 13603 reveals plans for payment to acquire material. For example:

Sec. 301. Loan Guarantees. (a) To reduce current or projected shortfalls of resources, critical technology items, or materials essential for the national defense, the head of each agency engaged in procurement for the national defense, as defined in section 801(h) of this order, is authorized pursuant to section 301 of the Act, 50 U.S.C. App. 2091, to guarantee loans by private institutions.

(b) Each guaranteeing agency is designated and authorized to: (1) act as fiscal agent in the making of its own guarantee contracts and in otherwise carrying out the purposes of section 301 of the Act; and (2) contract with any Federal Reserve Bank to assist the agency in serving as fiscal agent.

Sec. 304. Subsidy Payments. To ensure the supply of raw or nonprocessed materials from high cost sources, or to ensure maximum production or supply in any area at stable prices of any materials in light of a temporary increase in transportation cost, the head of each agency engaged in procurement for the national defense is delegated the authority of the President under section 303(c) of the Act, 50 U.S.C. App. 2093(c), to make subsidy payments, after consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of OMB.

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https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-pres...order-national-defense-resources-preparedness

So what we are talking about is not a great conspiracy to confiscate food or, according to Dave Hodges, force millions of Americans into FEMA camps.

Instead, we are basically looking at an old Cold War policy updated by the current administration.