LYCOS RETRIEVER 
War Powers Resolution: Democratic Congress
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Repeal of the War Powers Resolution would eliminate the concession of 1973 that presidents may use military force anywhere in the world, for whatever reason, for up to ninety days, if not longer. There is no constitutional warrant for that proposition. Repeal would remove that source of presidential power and put an end to fruitless legislative debate over whether presidential "consultation" had been sufficient, whether presidential reports were timely and complete, and whether the president should have reported under Section 4(a)(1), 4(a)(2), or some other provision. Repeal would eliminate the current futile dash to federal court, hoping for some kind of judicial answer. Members of Congress would understand that only legislative action can stop the president: withholding funds, prohibiting certain actions, and taking other concrete measures.
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When the War Powers Resolution came before Congress, more than nine years had passed since Congress enacted a statute authorizing the President to use military force in Indochina and there had been five congressional elections. It is probably unfair to assume that every member of Congress knew the details of what had occurred in 1964. But certainly many did.
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On four occasions during the 1980s, members of Congress went to court to charge that President Ronald Reagan had violated the War Powers Resolution. The first case, Crockett v. Reagan (1982), involved his sending military advisers to El Salvador. A district court refused to do the fact-finding that would have been necessary to determine whether hostilities or imminent hostilities existed in El Salvador. The judge pointed out that Congress had failed to act legislatively to restrain Reagan. A similar case was Conyers v. Reagan (1984). Eleven members of Congress brought action against President Reagan for his invasion of Grenada in 1983.
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The War Powers Act gives Congress the means to assert its proper constitutional role with respect to any use of American military force abroad to combat terrorism in the weeks, months, perhaps years ahead. Such use of military force will require difficult and profound moral and foreign policy choices on which the public may well disagree. Through the joint resolution, Congress authorized an initial military response against the perpetrators and those who harbored them. It did not, and under the Constitution it could not, cede its war powers to the President.
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Section 4 of the War Powers Resolution sets forth various reporting requirements. Thus, section 4(a)(1) requires a report when U.S. forces are introduced "into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances," and section 4(c) requires additional reports at least every six months during such deployments. Section 4(a)(2) demands a report when forces are deployed to foreign territory "equipped for combat"; and 4(a)(3) calls for a report when forces equipped for combat already located in foreign territory are "substantially enlarge[d] . . . ." While most commentators view the principle of such reports as desirable on policy grounds and unobjectionable on constitutional grounds, as a technical matter it is unclear what authority Congress has to compel the President to submit such reports. To the extent Congress is attempting to safeguard its power "to declare War," the scope of the reporting requirement is clearly excessive. That issue will be addressed below.
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Under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, the president must consult Congress within 60 days of engaging the U.S. in armed hostilities. If members do not authorize his action, he is required, by law, to remove U.S. forces from action.
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