Declaration of war by the United States

According to Article I, section 8 of the US Constitution, the power to issue a declaration of war by the United States lies solely with the US Congress. Congress must coordinate its war efforts with the president, for the body's powers to declare war are not sufficient to manage actual wars. This is the duty of the president, whom the Constitution names as commander in chief of the US armed forces. Congress and US presidents usually coordinate when directing the actions of the military in war.

The United States declared war eleven times between 1789, when the Constitution became effective, and the early decades of the twenty-first century. This number accounts for all formal declarations of war by Congress in that period. Additionally, presidents have committed the US armed forces to military actions that are not officially known as "wars" from Congress's perspective, though presidents are generally expected to seek congressional approval for such actions. Some presidents have controversially authorized military action against foreign targets without first seeking authority from Congress.

Background

The decision of the US Constitution's framers to invest war powers in the US Congress rather than the president was deliberate. The British Crown had ruled over the American colonies for many years before the United States became independent. Americans did not want their new government to become tyrannical, as they believed the British monarchy had been. The Constitution's framers believed the government of the newly founded country needed to be more inclusive of the American people to be considered a viable republic.

Given the momentous nature of warfare, the framers wanted the power of the United States to declare war on enemies to lie with Congress, a body of politically knowledgeable individuals whom the American people had directly elected to represent them in government. Granting this authority to a single individual, the president, would have created the opportunity for the US government to fall into despotism. Placing war-making powers with Congress ensured that the legislature's members carefully debated among themselves the prospect of going to war before making a decision.

Therefore, Article I, section 8 of the Constitution bestows upon Congress the power to declare war. Additionally, this section of the document grants Congress the authority to create and support an army and a navy, create laws for the maintenance of those armed forces, and call upon the military to enforce federal law and repulse foreign invasions.

Meanwhile, Article II, section 2 of the Constitution identifies the president as commander in chief of the US military. This means the president always exercises supreme authority over the US military, whether the United States is at war or not. The president's military power was not meant to be entirely separate from the power of Congress. Rather, the warfare authorities of the legislative and executive branches of government were intended to complement each other.

Overview

Between 1789, when the Constitution became active, and the early 1940s, the United States used Congress's war-making powers eleven times. President James Madison signed the United States' first declaration of war on June 18, 1812. This began the War of 1812 (1812–1815), which was fought between the United States and Great Britain over British abuses of American sovereignty. Two war declarations followed in the nineteenth century, one in 1846 beginning the Mexican-American War (1846–1848) and the other in 1898 starting the Spanish-American War (1898).

World War I (1914–1918) elicited two US declarations of war. They appeared late in the conflict, since most Americans had favored remaining neutral in European affairs during the war's early years. Congress first approved a declaration of war on Germany in April of 1917, as German aggression in Europe had begun affecting American interests. Congress passed the second declaration, against Germany's ally Austria-Hungary, in December of 1917. These declarations were discontinued in 1921, three years after World War I had ended.

The United States' next declarations of war appeared in flurries in 1941 and 1942. Congress approved war resolutions against Japan, Germany, and Italy in late 1941, thereby entering the United States into World War II (1939–1945). The next year, the United States declared war on Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania, as these nations all had joined the Axis Powers alongside Nazi Germany. The United States and other Allies defeated the Axis Powers in 1945.

Following World War II, the United States did not officially declare war on any other nation into the 2010s. This does not mean that the country engaged in no conflicts between the 1940s and the first decades of the twenty-first century. The interdependence of Congress's and the president's military powers meant that the distinction between the combat authorities held by each branch of government had always been somewhat blurred. As commanders in chief, presidents could legally command the US military to engage in conflicts that were not explicitly known as wars. Sometimes Congress has approved such actions of the president. At other times, presidents have acted independently.

In 1802, Congress granted President Thomas Jefferson the power to arm US ships in the Mediterranean Sea to defend American merchants from Barbary pirate attacks there. In 1964, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which allowed President Lyndon B. Johnson the right to use US military force to combat Communist forces in Southeast Asia, namely in Vietnam. Therefore, the United States never issued a formal declaration of war to fight North Vietnam during the Vietnam War (1954–1975).

In many other cases, presidents have ordered military actions without receiving congressional permission. Congress did not approve US involvement in the Korean War (1950–1953) under President Harry Truman, in Iraq (1990) under President George H. W. Bush, or in Haiti under President Bill Clinton. Furthermore, President Barack Obama did not seek congressional approval in ordering the US military to aid Libyan rebels in attacking Libyan government forces in 2011.

The War Powers Resolution of 1973 attempted to check presidential power to order the military into combat. It required presidents to inform Congress within forty-eight hours of having committed the US military to an engagement and limited the lengths of those engagements to sixty days. Presidents after 1973 generally considered the resolution unconstitutional but still have informed Congress of their military engagements as required by the act.

Bibliography

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