War Powers Act

War Powers Act. Adopted by Congress in 1973 over President Richard M. Nixon's veto, this resolution stemmed from legislators' perception that Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Nixon had abused the Constitution's war‐making powers during the Vietnam War. The act required the president to consult with Congress “in every possible instance” before introducing armed forces “into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances.” It also required the president to report any such deployments to Congress within forty‐eight hours, and stipulated that if within sixty days Congress refused to endorse the president's use of force, the troops must return home—with a thirty‐day extension to assure a safe withdrawal. The resolution also permitted Congress to force the withdrawal of U.S. troops from a region at any time by majority vote, without presidential recourse to a veto. In 1983 the Supreme Court invalidated this provision, ruling that only a congressional joint resolution, subject to a presidential veto, could force a withdrawal.

The War Powers Act did not work as its proponents anticipated, since presidents failed to notify Congress of troop deployments that would start the sixty‐day clock. Yet it remained in force, a potential check on the president's authority to deploy U.S. military force abroad.
See also Federal Government, Executive Branch: The Presidency; Federal Government, Legislative Branch.

Bibliography

Michael J. Glennon , Constitutional Diplomacy, 1990.
Louis Fisher , Presidential War Power, 1995.

Loch K. Johnson