The Evolution of Executive War Powers
Overview
- Students will understand how the role of the president in exercising war powers has expanded over time, demonstrating a trend toward increased unilateral decision-making. Students will also understand the increasing tendency of presidents to make important decisions about military actions without getting explicit approval from Congress.
Anticipate
- Begin the lesson with a brief overview of the constitutional provisions related to war powers, including the roles of Congress and the president. Students may read the case study essay on war powers individually, in pairs, or in groups. Additionally, the resources in the Teacher Supports may help introduce this content to your students.
Engage
- Divide the class into small groups, assigning each group one of the case studies provided.
- Each group reads their case study, which includes details on the president’s actions, the international and domestic context, and the responses from Congress and the public.
- Groups are tasked with identifying:
- The justification given by the president for their actions
- Whether the president sought congressional approval
- The outcome of the military action
- How the case illustrates a shift toward unilateral presidential action
Explore
- Each group presents a summary of their findings to the class. In their presentations students must describe:
- The justification given by the president for their actions
- Whether the president sought congressional approval
- The outcome of the military action
- How the case illustrates a shift toward unilateral presidential action, or the increasing tendency of presidents to make important decisions about military actions on their own, without getting explicit approval from Congress
- To illustrate the evolution of presidential war powers over time, organize the group presentations in chronological order. Start with the group discussing the earliest case study and end with the group covering the most recent case study.
- After the presentation by the second group, and for each subsequent group, prompt the students to consider whether the events discussed represent a change or a continuation in the way presidents used their war powers. This will help highlight shifts and patterns in presidential decision-making regarding military actions.
- Facilitate a discussion on the common themes that emerge from the case studies. Focus on how these instances relate to the increasing trend of unilateralism in presidential decisions regarding war powers.
Assess and Reflect
- Distribute or display reflective questions for students to answer either in a short-written form or as part of a closing discussion:
- Do you believe the trend toward the greater tendency of presidents to make important decisions about military actions on their own, without explicit congressional approval, is justified?
- The Constitution assigns Congress the power to declare war, yet recent presidents have used military force based on broad interpretations of national security and existing authorizations. How do you think this shift affects the system of checks and balances in the U.S. government? What potential risks and benefits might arise from presidents having the ability to make unilateral military decisions?
- How might this trend impact U.S. foreign policy and its associated democratic processes?
- What role should Congress play in future military engagements?
Student Handouts
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