Question, can Congress Un-Declare a war?

[lyonn]

Did a feeble search and found nothing, so, figure you can't.

[kurth]

1. Congress can always defund a war

not different than any other federal program.

[RaleighNCDUer]

10. Think that's maybe why the war funding is being kept OUT of the

annual budget?

You can't defund something that isn't funded in the first place.

[MadMaddie]

2. I asked the same question

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=335187&mesg_id=335327

[lyonn]

11. This may be one of the most important questions

since it appears bush has been given Way Too Much Power through the vote of Congress to give him authority to take us to war. As one Senator, Dem., asked this a.m., when will we know when we have won this war? Definitely appears to be something that the world will be dealing with for decades.

I remember bush stating on the carrier that major combat was over, or something to that effect. Wish we had demanded that they declare the war was over then. Not that Iraq had anything to do with war against those that attacked us on our soil. But bush obviously thought Afghanistan was no longer a major problem and that the country had it's own govt. and was well on the way to a democracy, bla, bla, bla. Oh, and that Osama was not that important either versus his "dead or alive" speech. Is the mind spinning?

[Toots]

18. By definition a "War on Terror" can never be won

There has always been terror and there always will be terror. Terror is an idea not a state or country. You can not fight an idea with the military. By definition this "War on Terror" will never end. So these "Emergency War Powers" the pResident is claiming are indefinite and without end. They are then Permanent.

[ET Awful]

3. Well, they'd have to first declare a war, otherwise it's a moot point.

Since no war has been declared since WW2, it's unlikely to be relevant to the current situation.

[HereSince1628]

4. Yes, but they've never had the guts to do that.

I

[Wordie]

5. You know, I've wondered that myself. I think that technically, they

probably can, but that the RW would block any such effort. I think I'd like to re-read the authorization for the war, because it appears now we are in a situation of endless war, and that's very dangerous. I don't know what can be done. :(

[Sammy Pepys]

6. I'm inclined to say no.....

...just because I don't think it would be that simple, but there is probably some way they could.

[lutherj]

7. Congress in effect un-declared Reagan's war on the Sandanistas.

That's what started the whole Iran-Contra scandal.

[LSparkle]

8. I wish ... I hope they amend the use-of-force resolution at least

to exclude the NSA program specifically. That's something they COULD (and SHOULD) do -- amend the powers they gave the AsshatInChief to begin with.

[Justitia]

9. You can de-fund it, which is how we ended Vietnam. Won't happen today. nt

[annabanana]

12. Vietnam was never declared...

It was always a "police action"

[tritsofme]

15. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

gave Johnson a much bigger hand to play.

[AtomicKitten]

13. Brownback just mentioned Declarations of War against Iraq and Afghanistan

ON C-SPAN NOW.

Christ, Gonzales actually corrected him. And these people are running our country!??

[lyonn]

14. They used the term Use of Military Force when Congress allowed

the president to go into Afghanistan to attack Al Queda (sp) immediately after 9-11 which seems to allow the president to use his war powers since the pres. controls the Armed Forces.

Then Congress voted on the Iraqi War Resolution, IWR. Well I guess that is president bush's war which has allowed him to ignore the laws of the land placed there by Congress.

Now what do we do? Looks like Congress is powerless at this point except for what others have mentioned and that is withhold money. No way that will happen with boots on the ground. Apparently there is no time limit on these presidential powers as long as there are troops fighting according to what little I have read.

[radio4progressives]

16. the war in viet nam was ended by congress n/t

[tritsofme]

17. I see no reason why the resolution couldn't be repealed

Or funding cut off as others suggested.