No, Trump Didn’t Violate the War Powers Act – The American Spectator | USA News and PoliticsThe American Spectator

It was hardly necessary to consult Nostradamus to know that the Democrats would denounce President Trump’s decision to bomb three Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday. Nonetheless, the combination of hypocrisy, historical illiteracy, and constitutional ignorance that characterized their reaction to the raid was startling even by Democrat standards. Several actually claimed that Trump somehow committed an impeachable offence by ordering the strikes, though none seemed able to specify any “high crimes” or “misdemeanors.” Some insisted that Trump violated the War Powers Act.

The problem with all this sound and fury is, of course, that the Democrats now braying about Trump’s “illegal” attack on Iran remained silent as the tomb during the numerous military strikes ordered by former President Obama. During his two terms in office Obama authorized military operations in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and Syria. Moreover, not only did Obama fail to seek congressional authorization for his frequent use of the military, he didn’t feel the need to give the War Powers Act lip service. He insisted that the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) obviated the need to consult with Congress.

Consequently, the Democrats have zero credibility when they feign concern about Trump’s failure to get congressional approval for the Iran strike. But hypocrisy has never impeded people like Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Upon learning about the Iran strike for example, he issued a statement that included the following exhortation: “We must enforce the War Powers Act and I’m urging Leader Thune to put it on the Senate floor immediately. I am voting for it and implore all Senators on both sides of the aisle to vote for it.” This was too much for constitutional scholar Jonathan Turley, who responded thus:

Schumer is the same politician who was silent or supportive in earlier unilateral attacks by Democratic presidents. In 2011, Obama approved a massive military campaign against Libya. I represented a bipartisan group of members of Congress challenging that action … Democrats were supportive when Clinton launched cruise missile attacks under Operation Infinite Reach on two continents on August 20, 1998. He ordered attacks in locations in Khartoum, Sudan, and Khost Province, Afghanistan.

Ironically, as Turley points out, President Trump has complied with the War Powers Act in this instance by immediately notifying Congress after the strike had been successfully completed and our bombers had departed Iranian air space. This brings us to a question that few of Trump’s critics have asked: What does the War Powers Act actually require? In the absence of a formal declaration of war by Congress, it requires a president to notify Congress within 48 hours of committing U.S. military forces to a conflict. This commitment must end within 60 days, after which he has another 30-day period to withdraw our forces.

In other words, the basic requirements of the War Powers Act are pretty straightforward. It is nonetheless controversial because Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution clearly stipulates that “the President shall be commander in chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states.” Presidents tend to take the position that their Article II powers cannot be arbitrarily changed by the other two co-equal branches of the government (i.e. Congress and the Judiciary). Consequently, since the War Powers Act was passed in 1973, most presidents have tended to ignore most if not all of the law’s stipulations.

The War Powers Act of 1973 was largely a Democratic project, promoted in the wake of the Vietnam War. At the time, Republicans opposed requiring strict congressional approval of wars, arguing that it was unconstitutional and interfered with the constitutional prerogatives of the commander-in-chief. The act imposed a 90-day deadline on military operations launched by the president without congressional authorization. It passed over President Nixon’s veto. The Democrats’ eagerness to seek congressional approval of military operations ended during the Clinton presidency.

Democrats Don’t Mind War, They Mind Trump

Democrats in Congress have historically been far more enthusiastic about the War Powers Act when Republicans control the White House than when their fellow Democrats occupy the Oval Office. This is why Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) partnered with neo-isolationist Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) in order to introduce a “War Powers Resolution” last week hoping that it would preempt the use of U.S. armed Forces against Iran. Ironically, it is hardly beyond the realm of possibility that this backfired — incentivizing President Trump to launch the attack on Iran’s nuclear sites earlier than he might have otherwise intended.

It’s difficult to know, of course. President Trump is fond of sending mixed signals to his opponents in Congress and in the corporate “news” media. It has long since been obvious to careful observers of his tactics in any given negotiation that he wants to keep the people on the other side of the table guessing about what he is likely to do next. This is why no one expected to find themselves glued to some screen on Saturday watching fireballs erupt from the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan sites. What he won’t do again is give the Democrats a weapon to use against him. He has not and will not violate the War Powers Act.

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