Another Good Plan Littering the Road to American Irrelevance
Kevin Drum argues that his first reaction to the Baker-Christopher war powers reform plan was «...that no one in either party would want to touch it with a ten foot pole.» I had a similar reaction, but because all that talk about professional staff for each branch would require a small yet notable shift of power from elected officials to civil servants. I suspect the the canard about limited government by elected officials will undue this reform, not the whiff of bipartisanship.
Matt Eckel also has a thoughtful, more philosophical essay critical of the war powers proposal, and concludes that the problem will be «the nature of war and republican government.»
Congress, in the end, will be no better a judge of the wisdom of going to war than the people who elect it. The body that will be the best check against an overreaching executive will never be Congress, whatever legislative reforms it may pass. Ultimately, the responsibility for judging the prudence of major military action lies with the media, and with American civil society at large. It is our job as citizens to pick apart the case made for war, deconstructing its logic, prodding its flaws, and ensuring that no wiser course of action exists. If we continue to abdicate that responsibility to our Congress and our president - whoever may fill those roles - then we will no doubt continue to suffer for our indolence.
My opinion about the war powers reform plan is summed up in one name: Diocletian. Is there an American around by that name?
Sphere: Related Content
Barrapunto
CoRank Español
Delicious
Enchílame
Fresqui Ocio
Furl
Google Bookmarks
Menéame
Netscape
Newsvine
Stumbleupon
Technorati Favorites
Yahoo MyWeb
Write a comment
No trackbacks
RSS 2.0
Bloglines
Live
MyAOL
Netvibes
Newsgator
Rojo
