Amendments to the 2020 Defense bill have been introduced to restrict President Trump from using force against Iran without prior congressional approval.
Trump should ignore those amendments as unconstitutional infringements on his authority as commander in chief.
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Don’t get me wrong: Trump should not take military action against Iran unless Iran attacks the U.S. or our allies or an imminent attack is detected. Nor even under those circumstances do I believe Trump has the authority to launch a sustained high-intensity military operation against Iran, absent prior congressional approval. I say this because of Article 1, Section 8, Subsection 11 of the Constitution, which grants Congress the authority to declare war. The Constitution also grants Congress the authority to appropriate funds for the support of military operations. That limits the executive’s power to employ military forces.
Still, I do believe the president can, in defense of American interests, take limited military action against Iran without congressional approval. Whether in preemption or response to existential threats such as nuclear attacks or to terrorism or to state threats posed by Iran, North Korea, China, or Russia, the president retains latitude to use immediate and limited force. To presume a president is compelled to seek prior congressional authorization in such cases is to ignore Article 2, Section 2 of the Constitution, which states that “The president shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States.”
The founders recognized that military commanders must have the flexibility to act efficiently and decisively. The fog and friction of war which always complicate military action make conflict complex enough, but to introduce formal hesitation and obstruction in face of necessarily imminent executive command would be absurd. The judiciary has recognized as much by granting wide latitude to the presidential discretion as where and when to seek congressional authorization of force.
Where does this leave us?
Put simply, in a pretty stable place. There is no evidence that President Trump is considering using force to overthrow Iran’s regime. Nor is there a plurality in Congress to support such action. Trump has the unilateral authority to order limited military action against Iran in defense of American interests.
