Does the "and" over rule the first part about the Constitution?

[uppityperson]

"I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed ..."

What if the pres commands someone in military or whoever takes this oath to not follow the Constitution?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. From the order of the phrases I would interpret the oath

as meaning that the Constitution is to take precedence. That would be consistent with the principle that the Constitution is the supreme law of the United States. Furthermore, military personnel are not required to obey an illegal order. Some discussion here: http://blog.constitutioncenter.org/2016/03/constitution-check-could-the-military-disobey-orders-issued-by-a-president-trump/

[pinboy3niner]

2. Military service members have a duty to refuse to obey illegal orders. nt

[PoliticAverse]

3. And a duty to obey all legal ones. And hopefully access to a lawyer who knows the difference. n/t

[Wounded Bear]

4. That's the dicey part...

Military cannot tolerate insubordination, so if you refuse an order, you damn well better be right.

[msongs]

5. "and" means doing both or all of the above so obeying orders is only valid if the consitution is

upheld

[Spider Jerusalem]

6. Only applies to lawful orders; the Nuremberg Defence doesn't work at court-martial (see Lt Calley)

[madamesilverspurs]

7. Trump seems to think so.

.

[pat_k]

8. As others point out, limited to "lawful orders" (Uniform Code of Military Justice Article 92)

Oath of enlistment (end of post) includes “according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice.”

And that would include ARTICLE 92. FAILURE TO OBEY ORDER OR REGULATION
http://www.ucmj.us/sub-chapter-10-punitive-articles/892-article-92-failure-to-obey-order-or-regulation

Any person subject to this chapter who–
(1) violates or fails to obey any lawful general order or regulation;
(2) having knowledge of any other lawful order issued by any member of the armed forces, which it is his duty to obey, fails to obey the order; or
(3) is derelict in the performance of his duties;
shall be punished as a court-martial may dire

A couple cases:

1804 Little v. Barreme
SCOTUS held that Navy commanders "act at their own peril" when obeying presidential orders when such orders are illegal, and that a President of the United States does not have "inherent authority" or "inherent powers" that allow him to ignore a law passed by the US Congress.


1969 United States v. Keenan
The Court of Military Appeals held that "the justification for acts done pursuant to orders does not exist if the order was of such a nature that a man of ordinary sense and understanding would know it to be illegal." , the accused (Keenan) was found guilty of murder after he obeyed in order to shoot and kill an elderly Vietnamese citizen. The Court of Military Appeals held that "the justification for acts done pursuant to orders does not exist if the order was of such a nature that a man of ordinary sense and understanding would know it to be illegal."

Oath of Enlistment
I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Oath of Officers upon Commission
I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.

Officers have a higher obligation -- to support and defend the constitution. Period.