Earlier this season, we talked with Stephen Wertheim of The Quincy Institute. During our interview we spent some time discussing the ways in which the US wages war, and how we seem to get ourselves into an awful lot of conflicts without having Congress declare war. So, we thought we’d give a brief overview of how this happens
One of the most shocking facts we found was the UnitedStates has engaged in military force around the world 243 times since welast officially declared “war” in 1942. Even more surprising, we’ve onlyofficially declared war 11times in our history, and we’ve certainly had more than 11 wars. Howdoes this happen?
CongressionalDeclaration of War
When the Founding Fathers sat down to write theConstitution, they wanted to make very sure the President didn’t become a king.To that end, they gave Congress the sole ability to declare war in Article 1,Section 8 of the Constitution. They then gave the supreme power ofthe armies and navies of the United States to the President (aka TheCommander-in-Chief) in Article 2,Section 2. So now, if the United States wants to go to war, Congressand the President must work together, creating a checks-and-balances system forwarfare.
This system worked until after World War II, when atomicpower and the era of the Cold War began. In the years after WWII, the federalgovernment created the Secretaryof Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff,the National Security Council,and the CIA, all ofwhich the President oversees, and who have a great amount of power in the realmof National Security. Slowly, the groundwork for the Presidential ability todeclare war was laid. When Truman wanted to intervene in Korea in 1950, but wasunsure that he’d get Congressional sign-off, he went to the United Nations,which passed aresolution advising its member states to support South Korea. Trumancommitted troops to the U.N. and went to war without Congressional approval.
This action set a precedent, as other Presidents realizedthey could use force without Congressional approval.
The War Powers Act
Instead of calling war “war” we’ve become very good atnaming it other things, like “police action,” “limited militaryengagement,” or “kinetic military action.” As the US was bogged down in theVietnam War, which was another long-term conflict but not technically a war,Congress sought to regain its power to declare war while also acknowledgingthat the President still had the ability to use and command his forces. Theresult was the WarPowers Resolution, which gave the President 60 days to seekCongressional approval after beginning military hostilities with a foreigncountry.
Things unfortunately didn’t change much. The LegislativeBranch is famouslyunwilling to deal with lawsuits alleging abuse of the War PowersResolution, and lawmakers mostly invokeit to express displeasure about a President of the opposite party.While both sides argue about who is right, the use of military force continues.
Congress Doesn’tReally Want to Declare War
Perhaps the most powerful reason that Congress hasn’t donemore to reign in the Executive Branch’s war-making ability is that itperhaps doesn’t really want to. Simply put, if you declare war, youown the consequences. For a body that seeks re-election every two years, havingto face angry voters over a war you declared, potentially multiple times, isnot especially appetizing. Stephen Wertheim mentioned this in our interview, andsaid that for responsible statecraft to work effectively, Congress must acceptit* responsibility to declare war, and proactively stop the Executive Branchfrom using military use without permission.
Our current and recent military engagements in the Middle East and North Africa are somehow still justified under the Authorization for Use of Military Force Congress approved in 2002. If Congress wanted to, they could demand that a new AUMF be issued, but then they’d own another war. Based on the long-term popularity of the Iraq war, it’s no surprise why they don’t want to do so.
)