Go offline with the Player FM app!
Does Congress’s Power to Declare War Mean Anything? (With Gary Schmitt)
Manage episode 498228914 series 2833439
The topic of this episode is, “Does Congress's power to declare war mean anything?”
In June of 2025, President Donald J. Trump directed US aircraft to drop 30,000 pound bombs on nuclear facilities in Iran. Some legislators in Congress and some media complained that this was a violation of the US Constitution. They note that Article I, Section 8 declares, “Congress shall have the power to declare war.” That same article of the Constitution also empowers the legislature to “provide for the common defense.”
So, was the President’s action constitutional or not? And does Congress’s power to declare war mean anything?
To help us think through these questions I have with me my AEI colleague, Gary Schmitt. He is the author of many books and articles on American government and he has written extensively on legislative and presidential war-making.
61 episodes
Manage episode 498228914 series 2833439
The topic of this episode is, “Does Congress's power to declare war mean anything?”
In June of 2025, President Donald J. Trump directed US aircraft to drop 30,000 pound bombs on nuclear facilities in Iran. Some legislators in Congress and some media complained that this was a violation of the US Constitution. They note that Article I, Section 8 declares, “Congress shall have the power to declare war.” That same article of the Constitution also empowers the legislature to “provide for the common defense.”
So, was the President’s action constitutional or not? And does Congress’s power to declare war mean anything?
To help us think through these questions I have with me my AEI colleague, Gary Schmitt. He is the author of many books and articles on American government and he has written extensively on legislative and presidential war-making.
61 episodes
All episodes
×Welcome to Player FM!
Player FM is scanning the web for high-quality podcasts for you to enjoy right now. It's the best podcast app and works on Android, iPhone, and the web. Signup to sync subscriptions across devices.