G’day
Has the US Congress declared war on Iraq under Article 1, Section 8, Paragraph 11 of the US Constitution?
What are the legal and effective limits on the president’s power to start a war without Congressional approval?
Regards,
Agback
No, they have not, and most likely will not. The War Powers Act of 1973 lays it out, but even THAT is not followed to the letter.
This hasn’t been followed much in the last thirty years or so.
The War Powers Act has never been enforced. It has a very murky Constitutionality, and every Administration that has wanted to use military force since it was passed has simultaneously said that it is invalid and asked for some sort of Congressional authorization, keeping things murky.
That being said, we are not in a state of war with Iraq. We’re fighting a war, but the actual “state of war” doesn’t technically exist.
“No man should become a politician who cannot get as many lenghtwise slices out of a hair as inch-thick boards from a twelve-foot log.” --Wibberly
The President has limited powers to act without prior congressional approval under the War Powers Act. The trouble is, every President since Nixon has claimed that the actions they undertake with the armed forces are part of the powers “inherent in the office” and as a practical matter they’re probably right; the civilian courts are loathe to enjoin military actions and wars as unconstitutional, generally saying there are no judicially manageable standards for deciding whether or not to do so, and that the matter is more properly a political question.
Congress has passed a resoultion authorizing military force to bring about disarmamenet, but has not formally declared war.
The legal basis for the United States attacking Iraq (and the resolution to which pravnik’s post refers) is the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002.
I’m not exactly sure the War Powers Act could be “enforced.” The Executive Branch, as you state, has generally respected the the law while stating their belief that it is unconstitutional… but I am not aware of any deadlock between the Executive and Legislative Branches that would have required the War Powers Act to be “enforced.”
As to a state of war, I disagree. A state of war can exist without regard to whether a war was declared. A state of war acknowledges a fact, not a legal procedure. By one count, there are 170 provisions of US law that may be activated during a period of war or national emergency that do not require the enactment of a declaration of war. The Geneva Conventions, for example, apply during a state of war regardless of whether it was not declared by a party.
The US congress had unanimously agreed to allow the president (shrub) to use military action against Iraq. I cant cite what particular proposal this was but it was decided moths ago. Not a formal declaration per se but plenty good enuf. Technically this isnt a war against Iraq but more of a military action to remove its present leaders. The US has nothing against the Iraqi people.