Presidential Proclamation - Issuances

Issuances

Other more recent policy-based proclamations have also made a substantial impact on economic and domestic policy, including Bill Clinton’s declaration of federal lands for national monuments and George W. Bush’s declaration of the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina as disaster areas.

Proclamations are also used, often contentiously, to grant presidential pardons. Recent notable pardon proclamations are Gerald Ford's pardon of former President Richard Nixon (1974), Jimmy Carter's pardon of Vietnam War draft evaders (1977) and George W. Bush's clemency of Lewis "Scooter" Libby's prison sentence (2007).

Although less significant in terms of public policy, proclamations are also used ceremonially by presidents to honor a group or situation or to call attention to certain issues or events. For instance, President George H.W. Bush issued a proclamation to honor veterans of World War II and Ronald Reagan called attention to the health of the nation’s eyes by proclaiming a “Save Your Vision Week.”