War Powers Resolution of 1973
The War Powers Resolution of 1973 is a significant legislative measure in the United States that aims to balance the powers of the presidency and Congress regarding military engagement. It emerged during a period of intense public dissent against the Vietnam War, particularly following President Nixon's unauthorized military actions in Cambodia in 1970. The resolution mandates that the President must notify Congress within forty-eight hours of deploying troops into situations where hostilities are imminent, thus ensuring Congress is involved in decisions regarding military action. Additionally, the resolution stipulates that military forces cannot remain engaged without congressional approval for more than sixty days, with a further thirty days allowed for withdrawal.
This legislative action was a response to the perceived overreach of presidential power during the Vietnam War era and sought to enhance congressional oversight over military decisions. Although it was passed in the context of political unrest and dissatisfaction with the Nixon administration, the War Powers Resolution remains in effect and has influenced how subsequent presidents interact with Congress on military matters. While some presidents have contested its constitutionality, the resolution signifies an ongoing dialogue about the distribution of war powers between the legislative and executive branches of the U.S. government.
On this Page
War Powers Resolution of 1973
Identification U.S. federal legislation
Date Signed into law on November 7, 1973
Disturbed by its inability to guide the Vietnam War policy choices of President Richard M. Nixon, the U.S. Congress enacted Public Law 93-148—the War Powers Resolution—to enhance legislative control over all presidents. Only for a brief time, however, did it restrain presidential uses of military power.
Public opinion regarding American involvement in the Vietnam War sharply divided the nation after 1968. During April, 1970, without congressional authorization, President Nixon sent U.S. and allied South Vietnamese armed forces into neighboring and neutral Cambodia, attacking sanctuaries used by Vietnamese communist fighters there. Democratic Party leaders controlled both houses of Congress and opposed the Cambodian invasion. A series of legislative restrictions on the war were introduced, but most initiatives were blocked. In November, 1972, Nixon was reelected, defeating antiwar Democratic candidate George McGovern.
After the election, congressional investigations into the Watergate break-in and related scandals left the Nixon White House weakened. Long stalled in Congress, a war powers measure designed to curb presidential war making was passed. Nixon vetoed it on October 24, 1973. A further sharp decline in support for Nixon then took place, mostly sparked by his firing of Watergate Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox and others. In this context, Congress again took up the war powers proposal and overrode Nixon’s veto: 284-185 in the House of Representatives and 75-18 in the Senate.
By this action, Congress asserted its coequal status with the presidency regarding decisions to go to war and sought to enable future Congresses to end long military campaigns conducted solely on presidential authority. Public Law 93-148 stated its purpose to be to “insure that the collective judgement of both the Congress and the President” guides decisions to use U.S. armed forces. Beyond traditional courtesies, it codified that Congress formally must be notified by the president within forty-eight hours if troops are sent into areas where hostilities are imminent. Its key provision demanded that unless Congress declared war or otherwise specifically authorized the use of force, any president may keep the troops in combat no longer than sixty days. A further thirty-day period was permitted for the safe withdrawal of troops.
Impact
The War Powers Resolution was a reflection of widespread dissatisfaction with the Nixon presidency and the long Vietnam War. It helped induce his immediate successors, Gerald R. Ford and Jimmy Carter, to achieve a greater degree of cooperation with Congress in handling military matters relating to foreign policy. Consistent with the law, Congress was kept informed regarding the few and limited military rescue operations ordered by Ford; Carter chose to use means other than military force in pursuit of his objectives. The War Powers Resolution was never repealed, but when filing required reports with Congress, many presidents asserted their belief that the act unconstitutionally limited inherent presidential powers.
Bibliography
Fisher, Louis. Presidential War Power. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1995.
Wormuth, Francis D., and Edwin B. Firmage. To Chain the Dog of War: The War Power of Congress in History and Law. Dallas: Southern Methodist University Press, 1986.