William_T._Bianco,_David_T._Canon]_American_Polit

The Constitution: a framework for government 55

shared powers. These are areas where no branch has exclusive control. For example,

the president has the power to negotiate treaties and make appointments to the federal

courts and other government offices, but these executive actions are to be undertaken

with the “advice and consent” of the Senate, which means they were intended to be

shared powers. In the twentieth century, these particular powers became executive

centered, with the Senate providing almost no advice to the president and routinely

giving its consent (often disapprovingly called rubber-stamping). However, the Senate

can assert its shared power, as shown by the Senate’s blocking of several of President

George W. Bush’s and President Barack Obama’s lower-court nominees and Obama’s

nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in 2016.

The war powers, which include decisions about when and how to use military

force, were also intended to be shared. After serious disagreements, the ultimate

compromise that the framers reached shows checks and balances at work, with the

president serving as the commander in chief of the armed forces and Congress having

the power to declare war and to appropriate the funds to conduct a war. One other

goal of the Founders in making the war powers a shared power was to ensure civilian

control of the military. By providing a role for both Congress and the president,

the Constitution made it more likely that this important democratic principle

would be maintained. George Washington set a critical precedent for this before

the Constitution was written when he resigned his commission as commander in

chief of the Continental Army. Congress had given Washington complete authority

over conduct of the Revolutionary War, and many in Congress wanted him to

continue to rule, almost as a king. Washington knew that it was essential for the new

nation to have democratically elected leaders control the military. By resigning his

commission, he made it clear that any future leadership role he would play (and it was

widely assumed by the Founders that he would be the first president) would be as a

civilian rather than a general.

Since very early in our nation’s history, the president has taken a lead role in the war

powers, often making the decision to use military force. Presidents have authorized

the use of American troops on hundreds of occasions, but Congress has declared war

only five times. Of these, Congress debated the merits of entering only one war, the War

The president and the Senate share

the appointment power to many

federal offices: the president makes

the nominations, and the Senate

provides its “advice and consent.” The

nomination of Neil Gorsuch (pictured

here at left) to the Supreme Court

was contentious, but Gorsuch was

ultimately confirmed by a 54–45 vote

in the Senate.

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