An F/A-18F Super Hornet assigned to the Black Aces of Strike Fighter Squadron 41 launches from the flight deck of the USS John C. Stennis in the Pacific Ocean, Jan. 28, 2016. Navy photo by Seaman Tomas Compian
Scott Beauchamp, Al Jazeera: When is America actually at war?
With or without Congress, President Obama can authorize military force
During his final State of the Union address, President Barack Obama challenged members of Congress to “send a message to our troops and the world” by finally authorizing the use of military force against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), then said that they weren’t really necessary when it came to doing so. “The American people should know that with or without congressional action, ISIL will learn the same lessons as the terrorists before them,” he said.
His statement’s brazenness was almost camouflaged by its simplicity. The president was saying that he didn’t need Congress to declare war in order for him to conduct war. Or, to be more accurate, he didn’t need Congress to continue conducting war.
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WNU Editor: I gave up a long time ago that I will be living in a society that is not at war. And while we are not at a stage of total war, everything is geared up to actually fight one.
2 comments:
There are no longer any sensible voices in the US Congress; they have all been stifled by corruption. The definition of an honest politician now is that when he's bought he stays bought. Also the War Powers Act absolved the Congress from any constitutional responsibility regarding war. So that creates opportunities for an autocratic president, which seems to suit many people who incidentally (wrongfully) declare that the Congress has no constitutional role in foreign affairs.
WNU Editor,
Aside from those two times, 2 Presidents, through 4 terms, 4 Congresses and 8 Houses have all pretended that a key Article of the US Constitution does not exist.
None of the Loliticians want to attach a "yea" to a failed war, or a "nay" to US military adventures,
And most of all, none of the Politicians want an actual debate on stuck wars and future wars, it's better to just go blindly bumbling along.
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