Commander in Chief and Other Powers

¶ … powers of the presidency are listed and outlined in Article II of the Constitution of the United States. In a relatively brief explanation of the executive branch, the Constitution's framers present a vision of a president with very specific and limited powers. Those powers include the service of Commander in Chief of the nation's armed forces, thereby entrusted with the capability and responsibility of making key strategic decisions related to the behavior of the United States in all military matters.

Additional roles played by the president include appointing Justices to the Supreme Court and other staffing decisions, which have major bearings on the political character and tenor of the nation. Prior to the First and Second World Wars, the United States had remained relatively insular and isolationist in its approach to foreign policy. There were some strategic military engagements prior to that point, but as soon as the United States entered into the global arena during Europe's conflicts, it assumed a new role as a global superpower.

The wars that were all fought on foreign soil ended up profiting the United States to a great degree, causing the powers of the President to escalate exponentially. As a result, the American president has become one of the most, if not the most, important position of power in the world now and possibly in history. The president of the United States has been dubbed the "leader of the free world" in the wake of the Cold War.

The President's presence is therefore felt significantly on the global stage, and this has increasingly been the case over the past fifty years. Whereas Congress's role remains squarely on domestic issues with only the occasional need to foray into foreign policy matters, the President frequently focuses on matters related to national security and diplomacy. Congress does often pass legislation that has a bearing on foreign policy, ranging from immigration acts to acts related to tariffs (Congressional Record Proceedings and Debates of the 108th Congress, n.d.).

Separation of power is ensured through the distinct role of Congress as law developer, something the president has little influence over generally. Therefore, Article II of the Constitution reveals the President's role in the system of checks and balances, given the power to veto Congressional bills. The Constitution also shows how Congress and the Judiciary use their respective roles and privileges to check the powers of the president. Each branch of the federal government influences the other indirectly or directly, but they do perform their duties separately.

When it comes to international affairs and foreign relations, the president has a great degree of authority in brokering deals. The recent meeting between President Obama, the President of Iran, and the leaders of several other nations in regards to lifting sanctions on Iran is a prime example of how influential all world leaders have become and not just the president of the United States.

Indeed, the Bush presidency's reaction to the September 11 terrorist attacks has shifted the global perspective on the validity of the Untied States as a unilateral power. President Obama has generally worked to undo the arrogant presumptuousness of his predecessor by working in a more cooperative manner with other world leaders. If several members of Congress opposed the deal with Iran, then it need not phase President Obama because of the nature of separation of powers. Members of Congress may pressure and censure the president, and so may the President's advisors.

Yet ultimately, the President of the United States is the one doing the work of negotiations and deal brokering on the international stage. Historically, the office of the presidency has been one of the most controversial elements in the Constitution given the rabid debates over federalism. The president symbolizes a strong central government and concentrated power. Attempts to limit the power and influence of the president beyond that which the constitution already allows are therefore natural.

Interestingly, term limits on the presidency were not set until relatively late in American history. Now it is taken for granted that a change in leadership promotes healthy balance of powers and prevents any one party from controlling or dominating political discourse or decision making. The fact that midterm elections enable shifts in political culture in Congress helps to offset the life terms served by Supreme Court justices.

As powerful as the president is, the office remains constrained by innumerable factors ranging from informal influences such as cabinet positions to formal ones such as the legislative and judicial branches of government. The Supreme Court has almost no influence on military decisions and other issues related to national security and foreign policy, as its role is simply to interpret the Constitution in order to preserve the integrity and consistency of the law.

Congress has a strong degree of influence on decisions related to official declarations of war, but those official declarations are sometimes circumvented, as they were during Operation Desert Storm and other Bush campaigns. Yet while Congress has some war-declaring powers, the President is firmly entrusted with the only title of Commander in Chief. As the chief leader of all branches of the American military, the President oversees the direction the country takes in world affairs.

Presidents have chosen to intervene in other countries, as Reagan did with great enthusiasm, and have chosen to remain as detached as possible, as Obama has attempted to do. The steering of the nation's foreign policy is the unique job of the President.

Although the President cannot make detailed decisions related to military strategy and mainly allows the Department of Defense to take care of such matters, the President is nevertheless the only office entrusted with the right and ability to make the more global decisions on war or peace strategy. In other words, the President makes the decision to invade or not to invade, and where. The rest is up to the military commanders. The nature of warfare has significantly changed since the invention of nuclear weapons.

Even before September 11, weapons of mass destruction and smaller terrorist attacks were both major concerns for the United States. Presidents have had to make difficult decisions on how.