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A Very Belated Congressional Debate on the ISIS War

In the end, a debate on the war that has no chance of stopping the war will be an empty ritual.
obama congress state of the union
President Barack Obama gives his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 27, 2010. (Photo was shot with a tilt-shift lens) (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy) This official White House photograph is being made available only for publication by news organizations and/or for personal use printing by the subject(s) of the photograph. The photograph may not be manipulated in any way and may not be used in commercial or political materials, advertisements, emails, products, promotions that in any way suggests approval or endorsement of the President, the First Family, or the White House.

The Post chides Congress and the administration for their tardiness in producing an AUMF for the war against ISIS:

Mr. Kaine and the outgoing Foreign Relations chair, Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), at least made a serious effort to forge a bill and get it passed. That’s more than can be said for the White House, which despite saying that it wanted congressional authorization declined to submit its own legislation [bold mine-DL].

The fact that the administration hasn’t provided its own resolution to Congress should remind us how little it values Congressional approval and Congress’ role in the decision to go to war. Voting to authorize the war at this point amounts to little more than rubber-stamping a policy that will continue regardless of how anyone votes. Obama and his officials falsely claim that they don’t need Congressional authorization for their war, and there are very few in Congress that would bother to dispute that claim. An administration that is prepared to distort or simply ignore the terms of previous AUMFs is not going to be bound by the restrictions in a new one, and the only other way for Congress to rein in the executive–cutting off funding–will never be tried for fear of being accused of undermining the military.

Maybe the administration would like Congress to vote for authorization to give the war some additional political cover, but it clearly isn’t that important to them. The administration is leaving Congress to its own devices on this because the White House doesn’t care whether it ever gets a new AUMF or not. The U.S. has been waging war illegally since August, and the administration seems quite content to continue doing so indefinitely. As ever, Congress is only too happy to oblige in letting the executive do whatever it wants. Both branches are doing their best “to dodge their legal and political duty,” and both will keep getting away with it until one of them holds the other accountable.

It would be better if Congress debated and voted on a resolution instead of shirking their responsibilities, but it’s important to understand that the entire process will be taking place as an after-thought. A ‘yes’ vote on a new AUMF will confirm that presidents can start and wage wars on their own authority and can then expect Congress to fall in line and endorse whatever they have decided to do. In the end, a debate on the war that has no chance of stopping the war will be an empty ritual that underscores how irrelevant Congress has become in matters of war and peace.

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