Presidents usurped war powers from Congress
In the nation’s capital, the easiest way to deal with the toughest issues is to sweep them under the rug.
It might be tackling the burgeoning national debt or ensuring the future of Social Security. But one problem hovering in the background has the biggest stakes – with thousands, even millions, of lives hanging in the balance.
It’s how presidents have gradually usurped war powers from Congress, moving ever further from what the framers of the Constitution had intended.
In his new book “Presidents of War” (Crown, 752 pp., ★★g☆), historian Michael Beschloss brings the issue to the forefront, chronicling the steady creep from the nation’s infancy to the Nixon administration’s handling of Vietnam.
It’s a dense read, best for serious history buffs. For everyone else, here are five takeaways:
1. Blame presidents for taking us into war.
The ink was barely dry on the Constitution when James Madison, our fourth president, waded in. He sought Congress’ agreement for the War of 1812 after he essentially dragged lawmakers aboard the cause to end their waffling.
The war never had widespread support, and it didn’t help matters that the British marched on a lightly defended Washington, D.C., and burned down the White House.
2. Presidents may lie about war.
President James Polk claimed his 1846 war with Mexico was “neither desired nor provoked by the United States” in a letter to Sen. Daniel Webster. Polk had no qualms about escalating it despite an outcry from some, including Webster, who called the war “illegal in its character.”
In those times, calling on Congress for consent wasn’t always easy. Abraham Lincoln saw the union dissolve into civil war at a time when Congress was on recess. He eventually called a special session, but not before running through 80 days of “self-awarded autonomy of a kind enjoyed by no previous president,” according to Beschloss. Lincoln never asked for a declaration of war – he treated the uprising of the South as an insurrection, not as a foreign power.
3. They can be dragged into war.
Woodrow Wilson did his part in resisting America’s entrance into World War I, riding the slogan “He kept us out of war” to a second term in 1916. But U-boat attacks on the open seas and an intercepted German cable aimed at inciting Mexico against the U.S. eventually brought GIs to Europe.
4. The modern undeclared war began with Truman.
Harry Truman would be first to truly cross the line, refusing to seek a declaration of war in Korea. Though a student of history and a former U.S. senator, Truman set a “dangerous example” for later presidents, Beschloss writes.
And the undeclared war was a mess. Truman and Secretary of State Dean Acheson blundered into a war neither wanted, then failed to let Americans know how difficult and costly it would be. There has been no declaration of war since – not for Vietnam, the Gulf War, Iraq or Afghanistan.
5. The threat remains today.
Beschloss didn’t write this 10-year project in vain. At least one member of Congress sees the threat.
U.S. Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., writing recently in The Wall Street Journal, said that Congress’ abdication of its constitutional role means war and peace are “no longer an expression of the people,” jeopardizing support for troops.
Perhaps Truman, Lyndon Johnson and Nixon are listening from the grave.