To appreciate the danger of bypassing the checks and balances of our constitution, consider a sampling of the types of actions performed under executive order: 110, 000 Japanese forcibly interned during WWII (FDR), steel mills seized (Truman, later challenged and found unconstitutional in the Supreme Court), affirmative action programs instituted (beginning with Kennedy and expanded by later presidents), price controls imposed (Nixon), and faith-based initiatives established (GW Bush).
FORBES: We Must Stop Treating the President As Our Savior