Readings on Fascism and National Socialism: Selected by members of the department of philosophy, University of ColoradoVarious
Philosophy
Readings on Fascism and National Socialism: Selected by members of the department of philosophy, University of Colorado
Various
Fascism; National socialism
The Führer unites in himself all the sovereign authority of
the Reich; all public authority in the state as well as in
the movement is derived from the authority of the Führer.
We must speak not of the state's authority but of the
Führer's authority if we wish to designate the character of
the political authority within the Reich correctly. The
state does not hold political authority as an impersonal
unit but receives it from the Führer as the executor of the
national will. The authority of the Führer is complete and
all-embracing; it unites in itself all the means of
political direction; it extends into all fields of national
life; it embraces the entire people, which is bound to the
Führer in loyalty and obedience. The authority of the Führer
is not limited by checks and controls, by special autonomous
bodies or individual rights, but it is free and independent,
all-inclusive and unlimited. It is not, however,
self-seeking or arbitrary and its ties are within itself. It
is derived from the people; that is, it is entrusted to the
Führer by the people. It exists for the people and has its
justification in the people; it is free of all outward ties
because it is in its innermost nature firmly bound up with
the fate, the welfare, the mission, and the honor of the
people.[50]
Neesse, in his _The National Socialist German Workers Party--An
Attempt at Legal Interpretation_, emphasizes the importance of
complete control by the party leadership over all branches of the
government. He says there must be no division of power in the Nazi
state to interfere with the leader's freedom of action. Thus the
Führer becomes the administrative head, the lawgiver, and the highest
authority of justice in one person. This does not mean that he stands
above the law. "The Führer may be outwardly independent, but inwardly
he obeys the same laws as those he leads."[51]
The _leadership_ (_Führung_) in the Nazi state is not to be compared
with the _government_ or _administration_ in a democracy:
_Führung_ is not, like government, the highest organ of the
state, which has grown out of the order of the state, but it
receives its legitimation, its call, and its mission from
the people ...[52]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account