I guess the neocon thinking now is an extension of the Rumsfeld Law that we go to war with the government we have no matter how incompetent.
YES, Congress should claw back its war powers but has not done so even though in theory it has set up the framework for doing so since 1973.
Once again practicality and partisan gamesmanship has nullified another explicit part of the Constitution with regard to the separation of powers leaving a vacuum now filled by the imperial presidency.
The real problem is not the malignancy and incompetence of the Trump administration but the powers of the presidency itself. As the writers of the "Cato's Letters" predicted the accumulation of power will inevitably transform a Republic into a tyrannical monarchy.
"The second, even more insidious risk than poor decisions, is that an autocratic president could use his or her power to start a war not because it’s in the country’s best national security interest, but as a ploy to consolidate power at home. "
= yes, Trump is misusing the war for internal politics and ambitions = authoritarian rule
The remedial forces to restore the balance of congressional/presidential requirements needed to constitutionally agree on declaring war (or any rephrased or spun terminology for declaring war) can be discerned by examination of the history of its progressive lop-sidedness. Any restoration to re-empower congressional power would have to come from the Democratic Party, as the extant distortions concerning war have come from the former, pre-fascist Republican Party. The Democratic Party, examined for the many, many failures to respond with the balancing powers they are supposed to represent over the last thirty years, can best be described as ineffectual, puerile, missing-in-action. Postured with condescending, entitled politeness, hapless and routine. Camoflaged behind sanctimonious speeches made one by one by ass-saving Democrats hardly are persuasive to deter the simple fact that the Dems are, have been, the needed enablers to the distortions of power by their constant inaction. Note how so suddenly they do now show energy, summonlng up the vital verve to keep the Democratic Party as it has been, in control. This voting country will never respond to this political corpse again, deflated by observing how the new, real promise of Bernie/AOC and other new factions are daily energetically trivialized by the old cadre within the Democratic Party. As a former life-long Democrat, I say "let no man write my epitaph."
How does the US citizenry extract itself from this non-virtuous, virtue-signaling, tribal warfare? Decades ago, Ayatollah Khomeini was challenged by a journalist who asked "How do you intend to govern your country when you do not have a mandate and only 30% of the population supports you?" The Supreme Leader's response? "Yes, that is true, but we have all of the guns." Iran's current leader is no different. It is also apparent that Trump has all of the guns. The military, The FBI, ICE, Homeland Security. He has all the guns. If one includes the DoJ, and consider it a Legal Gunslinger, or illegal, he has that as well. And he is willing to use them. Both internationally and domestically, Trump is willing to use the guns.
A really good post. The problem is that courts found every excuse to avoid war powers issues after Vietnam and Congress has largely decided not to act. The result is that the executive branch--with a leaning forward OLC--has come up with a legal standard that can justify virtually all military action without congressional authorization. If bombing Serbia for two months, invading Panama and Grenada, or sending 20,000 troops to Haiti to force the President to leave is not "war" requiring congressional action--all actions supported by OLC--then nothing will qualify as war. The only remedy is to force Congress to act--which is the theme of the proposals you cite. https://notesfortheperplexed.substack.com/p/did-the-strikes-on-iran-violate-the?r=kjxd5
Great post! Hard to get beyond the despair of the modern mind.,.so Ayn Randish !! Selfish, grasping, frightened etc! How can these electeds ever have a serious conversation about the American role in the total collapse of the international order and the mind boggling impact on the planet’s daily survival ?
I agree that Congress should claw back lots of its constitutional authority that it has either squandered, wrongfully delegated, or let die on the vine—from war powers to Chevron. But I could see different people defining the word “unprovoked” quite differently.
I guess the neocon thinking now is an extension of the Rumsfeld Law that we go to war with the government we have no matter how incompetent.
YES, Congress should claw back its war powers but has not done so even though in theory it has set up the framework for doing so since 1973.
Once again practicality and partisan gamesmanship has nullified another explicit part of the Constitution with regard to the separation of powers leaving a vacuum now filled by the imperial presidency.
The real problem is not the malignancy and incompetence of the Trump administration but the powers of the presidency itself. As the writers of the "Cato's Letters" predicted the accumulation of power will inevitably transform a Republic into a tyrannical monarchy.
The term national security is often misused as by makign actions that are dangerous to human and global security
This part
"The second, even more insidious risk than poor decisions, is that an autocratic president could use his or her power to start a war not because it’s in the country’s best national security interest, but as a ploy to consolidate power at home. "
= yes, Trump is misusing the war for internal politics and ambitions = authoritarian rule
The remedial forces to restore the balance of congressional/presidential requirements needed to constitutionally agree on declaring war (or any rephrased or spun terminology for declaring war) can be discerned by examination of the history of its progressive lop-sidedness. Any restoration to re-empower congressional power would have to come from the Democratic Party, as the extant distortions concerning war have come from the former, pre-fascist Republican Party. The Democratic Party, examined for the many, many failures to respond with the balancing powers they are supposed to represent over the last thirty years, can best be described as ineffectual, puerile, missing-in-action. Postured with condescending, entitled politeness, hapless and routine. Camoflaged behind sanctimonious speeches made one by one by ass-saving Democrats hardly are persuasive to deter the simple fact that the Dems are, have been, the needed enablers to the distortions of power by their constant inaction. Note how so suddenly they do now show energy, summonlng up the vital verve to keep the Democratic Party as it has been, in control. This voting country will never respond to this political corpse again, deflated by observing how the new, real promise of Bernie/AOC and other new factions are daily energetically trivialized by the old cadre within the Democratic Party. As a former life-long Democrat, I say "let no man write my epitaph."
How does the US citizenry extract itself from this non-virtuous, virtue-signaling, tribal warfare? Decades ago, Ayatollah Khomeini was challenged by a journalist who asked "How do you intend to govern your country when you do not have a mandate and only 30% of the population supports you?" The Supreme Leader's response? "Yes, that is true, but we have all of the guns." Iran's current leader is no different. It is also apparent that Trump has all of the guns. The military, The FBI, ICE, Homeland Security. He has all the guns. If one includes the DoJ, and consider it a Legal Gunslinger, or illegal, he has that as well. And he is willing to use them. Both internationally and domestically, Trump is willing to use the guns.
A really good post. The problem is that courts found every excuse to avoid war powers issues after Vietnam and Congress has largely decided not to act. The result is that the executive branch--with a leaning forward OLC--has come up with a legal standard that can justify virtually all military action without congressional authorization. If bombing Serbia for two months, invading Panama and Grenada, or sending 20,000 troops to Haiti to force the President to leave is not "war" requiring congressional action--all actions supported by OLC--then nothing will qualify as war. The only remedy is to force Congress to act--which is the theme of the proposals you cite. https://notesfortheperplexed.substack.com/p/did-the-strikes-on-iran-violate-the?r=kjxd5
Great post! Hard to get beyond the despair of the modern mind.,.so Ayn Randish !! Selfish, grasping, frightened etc! How can these electeds ever have a serious conversation about the American role in the total collapse of the international order and the mind boggling impact on the planet’s daily survival ?
To call Trump's action "unprovoked" requires poor historical knowledge.
I agree that Congress should claw back lots of its constitutional authority that it has either squandered, wrongfully delegated, or let die on the vine—from war powers to Chevron. But I could see different people defining the word “unprovoked” quite differently.