I've heard repeated mentions of a conspiracy concerning the extra-Constitutional nature of a certain function of government:

• The US President declares a National Emergency every year in order to retain certain 'emergency powers' which would not otherwise be granted by the Constitution.

After some digging to see if there was any truth behind this conspiracy, I was kind of surprised at what turned up.

We'll start with some history:

Senate Report 93-549: War and Emergency Powers Acts

https://famguardian.org/Subjects/LawAndGovt/Articles/SenateReport93-549.htm

Archive: https://archive.org/details/senate-report-93-549/mode/2up

Since March 9, 1933, the United States has been in a state of declared national emergency. In fact, there are now in effect four presidentially-proclaimed states of national emergency: In addition to the national emergency declared by President Roosevelt in 1933, there are also the national emergency proclaimed by President Truman on December 16, 1950, during the Korean conflict, and the states of national emergency declared by President Nixon on March 23, 1970, and August 15, 1971.

These proclamations give force to 470 provisions of Federal law. These hundreds of statutes delegate to the President extraordinary powers, ordinarily exercised by the Congress, which affect the lives of American citizens in a host of all-encompassing manners. This vast range of powers, taken together, confer enough authority to rule the country without reference to normal Constitutional processes.

Under the powers delegated by these statutes, the President may:

seize property; organize and control the means of production; seize commodities; assign military forces abroad; institute martial law; seize and control all transportation and communication; regulate the operation of private enterprise; restrict travel; and, in a plethora of particular ways, control the lives of all American citizens.

With the melting of the cold war--the developing detente with the Soviet Union and China, the stable truce of over 20 years duration between North and South Korea, and the end of U.S. involvement in the war in Indochina - there is no present need for the United States Government to continue to function under emergency conditions.

The Special Committee on the Termination of the National Emergency was created to examine the consequences of terminating the declared states of national emergency that now prevail; to recommend what steps the Congress should take to ensure that the termination can be accomplished without adverse effect upon the necessary tasks of governing; and, also, to recommend ways in which the United States can meet future emergency situations with speed and effectiveness but without relinquishment of congressional oversight and control.

This report led to the passage of the National Emergency Act of 1976, which was ostensibly supposed to reign in the excesses of emergency presidential powers.

An Act to terminate certain authorities with respect to national emergencies still in effect, and to provide for orderly implementation and termination of future national emergencies.

In the 43 years since its passage, 58 national emergencies have been declared, 31 of which have been renewed and continue to be in effect (as of January, 2019)

Source: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/list-31-national-emergencies-effect-years/story?id=60294693

Jimmy Carter (1 still in effect)

• Nov 14, 1979: The National Emergency With Respect to Iran

Bill Clinton (6 still in effect)

• Nov 14, 1994: The National Emergency With Respect to the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction
• Jan. 2, 1995: The National Emergency With Respect to Prohibiting Transactions with Terrorists Who Threaten to Disrupt the Middle East Peace Process
• March 15, 1995: The National Emergency With Respect to Prohibiting Certain Transactions with Respect to the Development of Iranian Petroleum Resources
• October 21, 1995: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Assets and Prohibiting Transactions with Significant Narcotics Traffickers Centered in Colombia
• March 1, 1996: The National Emergency With Respect to Regulations of the Anchorage and Movement of Vessels with Respect to Cuba
• November 3, 1997: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Sudanese Government Property and Prohibiting Transactions with Sudan

George W Bush (11 still in effect)

• June 26, 2001: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Persons Who Threaten International Stabilization Efforts in the Western Balkans
• Aug 17, 2001: The National Emergency With Respect to Export Control Regulations
• Sept 14, 2001: The National Emergency with Respect to Certain Terrorist Attacks
• Sept 23, 2001: The National Emergency With Respect to Persons who Commit, Threaten to Commit, or Support Terrorism
• March 6, 2003: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Persons Undermining Democratic Processes or Institutions in Zimbabwe
• May 22, 2003: The National Emergency With Respect to Protecting the Development Fund for Iraq and Certain Other Property in Which Iraq has an Interest
• May 11, 2004: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons and Prohibiting the Export of Certain Goods to Syria
• June 16, 2006: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Undermining Democratic Processes or Institutions in Belarus
• Oct 27, 2006: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Aug 1, 2007: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Persons Undermining the Sovereignty of Lebanon
• June 26, 2008: The National Emergency With Respect to Continuing Certain Restrictions with Respect to North Korea

Barack Obama (10 still in effect)

• April 12, 2010: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Conflict in Somalia
• February 25, 2011: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property and Prohibiting Certain Transactions Related to Libya
• July 25, 2011: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Transnational Criminals
• May 16, 2012: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Persons Threatening the Peace, Security, or Stability of Yemen
• March 16, 2014: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Ukraine
• April 3, 2014: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons With Respect to South Sudan
• May 12, 2014: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Conflict in the Central African Republic
• March 8, 2015: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property and Suspending Entry of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Venezuela
• April 1, 2015: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking the Property of Certain Persons Engaging in Significant Malicious Cyber-Enabled Activities
• Nov 23, 2015: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Burundi

Donald Trump (6 still in effect) [note 1]

• Dec 20, 2017: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking the Property of Persons Involved in Serious Human Rights Abuse or Corruption
• Sept 12, 2018: The National Emergency With Respect to Imposing Certain Sanctions in the Event of Foreign Interference in a United States Election
• Nov 27, 2018: The National Emergency With Respect to Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Nicaragua
• Feb. 15, 2019: The National Emergency With Respect to the Southern Border of the United States
• May 15, 2019: The National Emergency With Respect to Securing the Information and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain
• Mar. 13, 2020: The National Emergency With Respect to Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Outbreak

[note 1] Last 3 under President Trump updated to reflect current total as of March, 2020, bringing the total up to 61 National Emergencies declared since passage of NEA, 34 currently in effect.

Source; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_national_emergencies_in_the_United_States

That's an awful lot of ongoing 'National Emergencies', many of which might come as a surprise to most Americans.

How does a threat to democraric elections in Zimbabwe or Belarus constitute a 'National Emergency' in the US?

What does the Congo, Lebanon, the Western Balkans, Yemen, Ukraine, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, or Burundi have to do with a 'National Emergency' in the US?

These seem like questions that more people should be asking. Your tax dollars, hard at work...