A natural disaster places an immense amount of strain on our civilian population as well as the political leaders who are responsible for their state’s overall well-being. Hurricane Katrina was a perfect example of how bad a natural disaster can affect a single state. Louisiana was in a state of emergency and the state elected officials held all the power to assist in the palm of their hands. At the time of this state’s crises, Governor Kathleen Blanco was charged with this responsibility. Each state’s governor has the authority to enact Posse Comitatus. Whenever they feel that their state is in an unruly state and Marshall Law is needed. The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 outlines the right of states, which can affect the wellbeing of citizens.…
According to the War Powers Resolution, the Commander in Chief can only send American personnel abroad to take military action against another country only with a declaration of war from Congress. However, according to “statutory authority” or in the case of an attack on the United States, the president reserves the right to take action against a sovereign country, given that the president has issued a forty-eight hour notice to Congress, and the personnel remain active for no longer than sixty days. This important resolution severely limits the power of the Commander in Chief, and lays within the system of checks of balances which is vitally integral to the United States government.…
The War Measures Act is a federal statute that was created by the Borden government 1 In 1914 or roughly after the outbreak known as World War I. The act gave the Canadian government broad powers that would allow them to maintain the security and order of the country throughout war or insurrection. What did the act specifically say and how did it impact Canada? Throughout this report I will talk about what the War Measures Act specifically stated and how it impacted Canada, not as individuals, but as a country.…
Truman’s involvement with the Korean War is another example of how past presidential practices have not maintained the Constitution’s original intent between the balance of power and limits. In deciding to go to war against North Korea, Truman acted unilaterally and never even sought Congress’s authorization. He did not even seek retroactive approval. Indeed, “President Truman had altered the Constitution by taking the country to war against North Korea without either formal declaration or statutory authorization, relying instead on resolutions passed by the UN Security Council.” In his work, John Yoo persistently quotes that James Madison, “wanted to prevent the president from using his war powers to enhance his overall power and importance…
In my opinion is I agree that the president has usurped the constitiutional power of the Congress. I agree this statement because he is wielding the most pontent legislative power. The Constitution does quote that “All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in the Congress of the United States.” Most people agree that he has usurped the Constitiutional Power of Congress. It also seems that the president seems to wield the legislative power. In Article 2, Section 3 of the Constitiution states that the president “shall take Care that the laws be faithfully executed.” Congress wields the legislative power and it seems the president is wielding that power.…
Under the constitution the President has military, legislative, appointment, and diplomatic power. Our framers of the constitution wanted a strong military but not complete seizure of the government. Diplomatic powers and appointment powers are also under senate’s approval. The President’s legislative power can be over ridden by congress so by far this is not one of the power points of presidency. The President has sole powers of pardons granted. Under circumstances of war and terrorism the president engages in the most power.…
The main general argument that Yoo makes in The Power of War and Peace: The Constitution and Foreign Affairs After 9/11, is that the President has the right to declare war. In regard to war making, the Framers went to different authorities such as John Locke for advice…
My initial reaction would be to side with Congress. The War Powers Resolution allows the president to engage in an act of war without the consent of congress only in the case of an attack on the United States, or by “statutory authorization”. Based on this, the legislative branch seems to be in the right in this situation. I would ask the president questions pertaining to the goals of the US forces in the region, and questions to Congress such as to their opposition to the presidents actions.…
There are two perspectives on presidential power. The two perspectives are presidential power by persuasion and presidential without persuasion or unilateral. The first perspective where presidential power is persuasive means that the president needs help in order to achieve an outcome. The president tries to convince other branches of government or other high-ranking officials to implement an idea of his. This all depends on the president’s ability to bargain with other branches or even his own branch to influence policy. The Unilateral perspective means that the president can act alone when making policy decisions. The unilateral perspective forces the judiciary to react.…
Although only Congress has the right to authorise the use of the armed forces, if the president acts there is little Congress can do to restrain him.This is a power given to the President domestically, executing the power on an international scale gives the President a powerful image that asserts his/her dominance. An example would be Franklin Roosevelt. Roosevelt's four terms as president were marked by two of the largest threats to America; the Great Depression and World War II. The role President Roosevelt played during World War II showed complete dominance at an international scale, he can be seen to be one of the most influential Presidents that America has ever had. Franklin D Roosevelt was given the power to be Commander-In-Chief, as all Presidents do and had became an international figure because of…
War powers between the legislative and the executive branch is an important and complex issue in American national politics because there are multiple interpretations of what constitutes the appropriate relationship between the legislative and the executive branch in regard to war powers. Both Louis Fisher in his book, Presidential War Power and John Yoo in his book, The Power of War and Peace: The Constitution and Foreign Affairs After 9/11 focus on what is the appropriate sharing of war powers between the legislative and executive branch? Fisher and Yoo are both scholars in this area of study but have different opinions on what constitutes as sharing of war powers between the legislative and the executive branch. This paper will focus on…
Presidential powers are laid out in article II of the constitution, these include a range of formal power such as the power to propose legislation, submit the annual budget, sign legislation, veto legislation, act as chief executive, nominate federal judges and several others. There are also a range of informal powers that have progressively increased in power such as the ability for Presidents to issue executive orders. Although the founding fathers intended to create a government that had a system of checks and balances to prevent tyranny, the effectiveness of these checks in place may not have been as authoritative as intended as the President has ways of getting around the checks in place.…
Some review on the war powers act is that it is a government law expected to check the president's energy to confer the United States to a furnished clash without the assent of Congress. The determination was embraced as an United States Congress joint determination; "this gives that the President can send U.s. military enthusiastically abroad just by announcement of war by Congress, "statutory approval," or if there should be an occurrence of "a national crisis made by assault upon the United States, its regions or belonging, or its military"(wiki 1). The War Powers Resolution requires the President to tell Congress inside 48 hours of conferring military to military activity and disallows military from staying for more than 60 days, with a further 30 day withdrawal period, without an approval of the utilization of military power or an announcement of war. The determination was passed by two-thirds of Congress, overriding a presidential veto. It has been claimed that the War Powers Resolution has been damaged previously, for instance, by President Clinton in 1999, amid the besieging crusade in Kosovo.…
In the past, the power of executive privilege has been used by Presidents to conceal information that has to do with foreign affairs and negotiations, military, national security issues as well as deliberations and policy making that is done between the President and his top aides. This power is only used when Congress asks the President or one of his top aides to produce all of the information pertaining to an event or situation. If the President then feels that parts of this information needs to be kept secret to protect the best interest of the public, or the other issues listed previously, then he will use executive privilege in order to not give that information to Congress. A huge part of executive privilege is to protect the deliberations and advice given by the President’s aides. When the President’s advisors give him advice, they need to be able to give him the best advice possible and if there is a chance that everything they said could be made public. For instance if the President and advisors are discussing what needs to be done in relation to a foreign power and one suggests to nuke them, one suggests a covert attack and one suggests a peaceful resolution. If the final decision is a peaceful resolution, and Congress asks for all of the information on the subject, then the President should use executive privilege to keep those other possible outcomes from going public, both to keep the public from getting out of control or uneasy and to keep the other country from finding out the other options and retaliating. This power ensures that the President’s advisors can be completely honest and say what needs to be said without being worried about their words being taken the wrong way or too harsh or hurt their image.…
The Constitution clearly gives that power to Congress only. Yet recent presidents have been able to fight wars without Congressional approval. Many people believe that we should go back to the days when the president and congress were more or less equal in power. The President’s veto power is also a powerful weapon. The role of the President is described vaguely in the Constitution, but the executive veto power he possesses is precisely defined in the same document. The President cannot write legislation, he can only sign a bill into law or veto it. When the President veto’s a bill, it is completely done. He doesn’t have line item veto power. Congress gets bills passed if it is preferred by the President. As president, Barack Obama has made a habit of bypassing or ignoring constitutional limitations on his power. A lawsuit has been filed against President Obama over his alleged abuse of executive power. It will focus on how Obama has carried out his health care overhaul. Republicans say the lawsuit is necessary to keep the president in check, after he allegedly exceeded his authority with unilateral changes to the Affordable Care Act. In the U.S., health and social care makes up 8% of the economy so this has made a huge impact on the economy and the lives of Americans. President Obama was heard saying, “That’s the good thing about being president: I can do anything I want.” Although said as a joke, it…