Action was lawful, experts say

ONE-OFF ATTACK

AMBER PHILLIPS To hear some members of Congress tell it, President Donald Trump’s sudden and direct attack on the Syrian government Thursday night was illegal. Congress, after all, is the only branch of government that can authorize war.

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., tweeted: “Assad is a brutal dictator who must be held account for atrocities. But the president’s failure to seek congressional approval is unlawful”

But foreign policy experts say Trump is probably OK launching one or even a couple series of strikes on his own without Congress’ permission. That’s because the War Powers Act allows the president to take some military action on his own.

If Trump wants to go any further — well, then our experts say, he’s going to need Congress’ blessing. Trump thought the same thing when Obama was considering military strikes against Syria in 2013, tweeting:

“The President must get Congressional approval before attacking Syria-big mistake if he does not!”

The line on when a president needs Congress’ approval is fuzzy, but it’s more of a know-it-when-you-see-it-situation, said Phillip Carter, a senior fellow with the national security-focused Center for a New American Security think tank.

A president’s unilateral power, he said, is “something short of war. It’s the use of force by the president to achieve an immediate end,” he said. President Ronald Reagan didn’t seek congressional approval when he bombed Libya in retaliation for a bombing of a Pan Am flight over Lockerbie, Scotland.