 The chief concern among military and political leaders was due to the fact many of the largest populations of Japanese Americans were in close proximity to vital war assets along the Pacific Coast.In response to the public fears, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942.The order "granted the secretary of war and his commanders the power "to prescribe military areas in such places and of such extent as he or the appropriate Military Commander may determine, from which any or all persons may be excluded."