What examples in U.S. history support or refute Cicero’s claim?

What can you conclude from this statement?

Facts they should arrive at are:

    Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress
    the right to declare war and raise and support military forces.

    Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution states that the
    president shall be commander in chief of U.S. military forces.

    The War Powers Act of 1973 limits the president’s ability to
    use military forces by requiring him to report the use of troops
    to Congress within 48 hours and allowing him to continue their
    use for only 60 days without congressional authorization.

ii. Have students discuss and cite historic examples for the following customary factors surrounding the committal of military troops:

    Few members of Congress will challenge a successful military
    operation.

    The United States often sends troops into hostile situations as
    part of UN operations.

    The views of foreign policy elites and military leaders are very
    important in shaping policy in times of conflict, as are national
    security concerns.

    Popular opinion is an important influence on the president and
    Congress in times of conflict, although the government does
    not always do what the public wants (example: Congress
    continued to appropriate funds for the conflict in Vietnam even
    after it became unpopular).

iii. Ask students to select one of the following conflicts to investigate further. You may wish to have them work individually or you might break the students into groups that will research each of the conflicts together. To hear the audio files, you need the RealPlayer plug-in. Download it now.

The Declaration of War on Japan
Franklin D. Roosevelt
14.4 kbps
28.8 kbps
(running time: 7:44)

The Cuban Missile Crisis
John F. Kennedy
14.4 kbps
28.8 kbps
(running time: 7:31)

Operation Desert Storm
George Bush
14.4 kbps
28.8 kbps
(running time: 6:33)

Other conflict choices include the Korean War, the Vietnam War, President Reagan’s invasion of Grenada, President Bush’s invasion of Panama, and President Clinton’s use of NATO forces in Kosovo.

iv. Students should focus their research on the following questions.

1. Why and how did the conflict begin?
2. What was the role of the United States in the conflict?
3. Did the president and Congress act in accordance with the Constitution and the War Powers Act? Was a formal declaration of war made? Did the president report to Congress?
4. What was the president’s view of and role in the conflict?
5. How did Congress view and support the use of troops in the conflict?
6. Were U.S. troops part of UN or NATO forces?
7. Who were the key policy makers in Washington? Who were the key military leaders involved? How did they influence U.S. policies?
8. Were there any U.S. interests or national security concerns that determined U.S. actions?
9. What was popular opinion of the conflict and U.S. involvement in it?
10. How was the conflict covered in the media?

Date—when troops were sent in.

Parties—those involved in the conflict.

Background—political and social climate surrounding the incident.

Discussion—key events that lead to U.S. military involvement and/or continued involvement.

Decision—the legal and political argument for or against the president’s actions in the chosen situation. This should be supported with the research from step 2.

If students are working in groups, have some of the group members write a brief supporting the president’s actions and some write a brief condemning his actions.

• The president must report in writing to Congress within 48 hours after sending troops into a hostile situation.
• Congress must provide for the continuation of the use of troops within 60 days by a formal declaration of war or other statutory authorization.
• If Congress does not authorize the continued use of troops within 60 days, the president must withdraw the troops.
• If Congress passes a concurrent resolution directing the president to remove the troops, he must comply.