James' World 2

Hmmmm … The Trump Administration seems to be full of unthinking Idiots!

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President Trump has yet again circumvented the legislative branch as he orders American forces back into combat in the Middle East, weeks after both chambers of Congress rebuked him for waging war with Iran without authorization.

The collapse of the cease-fire and resumption of hostilities has inflamed a debate on Capitol Hill over war powers just as the administration is seeking tens of billions of dollars to pay for the conflict.

That has presented Republicans with a political worst-case scenario months before midterm elections in which their majorities are at stake: They are being asked to vote to fund an unpopular war over which they have had no meaningful oversight, and which they have never voted to approve.

“The greatest fighting force on the planet, the last great superpower must be fully equipped, and that’s the job of Congress to make sure it’s done,” Speaker Mike Johnson told CNN’s Manu Raju last week at the Capitol. The administration last month requested $87.6 billion in supplemental funding that would include $67.1 billion in extra military spending this year.

Asked whether it wasn’t also the job of Congress to authorize the war, Mr. Johnson replied: “We’re going to supply the needs for America’s national security.”

The position amounts to the latest instance of Republicans ceding power to the executive branch, as they sidestep a debate over the conduct of the war and try to rally support within their ranks for a filibuster-proof, party-line bill to pay for it with no strings attached.

It is all the more remarkable coming weeks after bipartisan majorities in both the House and Senate voted to reassert Congress’s constitutional role over matters of war, a slap on Mr. Trump’s wrist four months into a conflict that he had said would last a matter of weeks.

Democrats who worked for months to rally support for such a reproach have followed it up by refusing to allow consideration of the annual defense policy bill or back legislation to fund the military. They have argued that Congress cannot separate its power of the purse from its constitutional authority over war, demanding that the administration share more information about its strategy and plan for the war before they consider voting to bankroll it.

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Speaker Mike Johnson at the Capitol last week. He said it was “the job of Congress to make sure” the U.S. military was “fully equipped.” Credit…Alex Kent/The New York Times

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