White House Plans Broad Crackdown on Liberal Groups

[Celerity]

3. Enabling Act of 1933

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enabling_Act_of_1933

The Enabling Act of 1933 (German: Ermächtigungsgesetz, officially titled Gesetz zur Behebung der Not von Volk und Reich. 'Law to Remedy the Distress of People and Reich') was a law that gave the German Cabinet—most importantly, the chancellor, Adolf Hitler—the power to make and enforce laws without the involvement of the Reichstag or President Paul von Hindenburg. By allowing the chancellor to override the checks and balances in the constitution, the Enabling Act of 1933 was a pivotal step in the transition from the democratic Weimar Republic to the totalitarian dictatorship of Nazi Germany.

Background

On 30 January 1933, Adolf Hitler, leader of the Nazi Party (NSDAP), was appointed as Chancellor, the head of the German government. Hitler immediately asked President von Hindenburg to dissolve the Reichstag. A general election was scheduled for 5 March 1933.

Reichstag fire

On 27 February 1933, the Reichstag building of the German parliament caught fire. Acting as chancellor, Hitler immediately accused the Communists of perpetrating the arson as part of a larger effort to overthrow the German government. He persuaded Hindenburg to enact the Reichstag Fire Decree, which abolished most civil liberties, including the right to speak, assemble and protest, and the right to due process. A state of emergency was declared on the basis of the decree, which enabled a violent crackdown against the Nazis' political enemies, in particular the Communist Party.

Amid the ongoing repression, Hitler contended that the Reichstag Fire Decree was nonetheless insufficient and demanded a more sweeping measure. He submitted to the Reichstag a proposal for an enabling law that would grant effectively untrammeled power to his cabinet.

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