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Is The War on Iran Unlawful And Unfair To U.S. Troops?

Is The War on Iran Unlawful And Unfair To U.S. Troops?

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Ocasio-Cortez, Shalala lead finalists for democracy awards

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is one of several freshmen in Congress who were named finalists in the Democracy Awards competition, which highlights congressional offices that are well run and offer exceptional constituent service.

Brittany Greeson/Getty Images
Bill Theobald
By Bill TheobaldApr 02, 2020
Bill Theobald

Bill Theobald is senior writer at The Fulcrum, where he focuses on everything to do with voting. This December marks his 40th anniversary in the business, and he still believes -- now more than ever -- that the glow from great journalism can truly light the world.

See More Writings by author

Freshman members of Congress, particularly the newest female lawmakers, are leading the way on Capitol Hill in how they run their offices and serve constituent needs.

The Congressional Management Foundation announced Thursday the finalists for its Democracy Awards and nine people in their first terms — the most in the three years the awards have been handed out — made the cut.

Seven women are among the finalists, again the most in the short history of the awards, which honor members of Congress for their work in four categories: constituent service; workplace environment; transparency and accountability; and innovation and modernization.

Also for the first time, two members were chosen as finalists in two categories — prominent first-term House Democrats Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, an icon of the progressive movement, and Donna Shalala of Florida, who was Health and Human Services secretary in the Clinton administration.

"Now, more than ever, Americans need to hear about examples of their government officials performing at their best," said foundation CEO Bradford Fitch.

A committee, made up mostly of former members and staffers, will choose one Republican and one Democrat as winners in each category. The winners will be announced in a few months.

Here are the finalists:

Constituent Service

Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Ill.

Rep. Kendra Horn, D-Okla.

Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass.

Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Fla.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas

Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Penn.

Rep. Rob Wittman, R-Va.

Workplace environment

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Fla.

Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont.

Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb.

Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich.

Transparency and accountability

Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa.

Rep. Tom O'Halleran, D-Ariz.

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas

Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas

Rep. Van Taylor, R-Texas

Innovation and modernization

Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif.

Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas

Rep. Tom Graves, R-Ga.

Rep. Rob Woodall, R-Ga.


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Unpacking War Powers in the U.S.-Iran Conflict: Who Decides When America Goes to War?

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(Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

Unpacking War Powers in the U.S.-Iran Conflict: Who Decides When America Goes to War?

What Is The War Powers Resolution of 1973?

The War Powers Resolution of 1973 is a law enacted by Congress that limits the U.S. president’s ability to wage or escalate military operations overseas. Passed on November 7, 1973 amid the Vietnam War, the War Powers Resolution reasserts Congress’ constitutional power “to declare war” and “to raise and support Armies.” A key provision of the War Powers Resolution requires the president to submit a report to Congress within 48 hours of military deployment in the absence of an official declaration of war by Congress detailing:

  • The circumstances requiring U.S. forces;
  • The constitutional or legislative justification for the president’s actions;
  • The estimated duration of U.S. involvement in the hostilities.

If Congress does not formally declare war or enact special authorization for continuation of the U.S’ involvement in a conflict within 60 days of the report’s submission, the president must withdraw U.S. troops from the hostilities. If Congress does declare war, the president is instructed under the War Powers Resolution to report to Congress periodically on the status of the hostilities no less than once every 6 months.

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Both chambers of Congress are in session this week and next. The House will probably function about like it has been - lots of votes (often by voice) on uncontroversial bills; many fewer votes on Republican priority bills. Lots of hearings this week and a few legislator updates.

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Both chambers have a busy week with 64 total committee meetings scheduled.

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Who Decides Whether America Goes to War?

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(Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

Who Decides Whether America Goes to War?

Because taking our country into war has the potential, if not the likelihood, even in modernwarfare, of costing the bodies and lives of American soldiers as well as disrupting the economy, this is an important question.

The Constitution is the guide to answering this question. The Constitution clearly states that Congress has the power to declare war. The President does not have that power.

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Republicans aren’t willing to call the war in Iran what it is

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(Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images/TNS)

Republicans aren’t willing to call the war in Iran what it is

Let's state the obvious: We’re at war with Iran.

My evidence? Turn on your TV. U.S. forces, working with Israel, killed the supreme leader of Iran and many of his top aides. We sunk Iran’s navy and destroyed most of their air force. We bombed thousands of military sites across the region. President Trump, the commander in chief, has demanded “unconditional surrender” from Iran. He routinely refers to this as a “war.” Pete Hegseth, who calls himself the secretary of war, also describes this as a war daily, such as last week when he said, “We set the terms of this war.”

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