Congressional Acquiescence Facilitates Executive Branch Military Adventurism |
War Powers
Here as elsewhere, lethargy in the legislature is no way to counter execss energy in the executive.
Jonathan H. Adler | 1.3.2026 2:47 PM
Yesterday, Civitas Outlook published my column on the lawfulness of the Trump Administration's drug boat strikes. Depending on your view, that column is either quite timely (there were additional boat strikes on December 31) or completely overtaken by events.
For reasons I explain, the strikes are easier to justify in light of late 20th-century precedent than they are under the original understanding of the relevant constitutional provisions. The same holds true of the Trump Administration's attack on Venezuela to arrest Nicholas Maduro (and bomb the Hugo Chavez Mausoleum). In this regard, my views are quite similar to those of Jack Goldsmith, noted by Eugene below.
These portions of the column are relevant on this point:
Presidents of both parties have assumed the authority to direct military operations without legislative authorization. The Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) in the Department of Justice has generally approved such actions, reasoning that the........