On his first full day in office, President Joe Biden took advantage of a special, wartime power to supercharge the U.S. pandemic response, using a tool he would return to multiple times throughout his presidency. The Defense Production Act dates back to the start of the Korean War. It gives the president power to order private business to prioritize and produce goods needed for national defense, emergency preparedness or recover from national disasters. If the Act sounds familiar, it's because former President Donald Trump leaned on the DPA in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic to increase production of life-saving medical equipment, like ventilators and masks. Biden has exercised the authority often – notably so, experts say – and drawn criticism and raised concerns he is using it as an end-run around Congress. Here are a few other prominent examples of how presidents in the past have used the Defense Production Act. #biden #trump #obama #bush #carter #dpa #whitehouse