What Is Congressional Authorization for War — and Why Does It Matter?

What Is “Congressional Authorization for War”?
…and why does it matter right now?

“The Constitution supposes, what the History of all Governments demonstrates, that the Executive is the branch of power most interested in war, and most prone to it.”
— James Madison

Only Congress can declare war.
The Constitution gives that power specifically to the legislative branch — not the president.

Presidents must get Congress’s approval before launching military action — unless the U.S. is under imminent attack.
It’s about checks and balances.
No one person should be able to send us to war.

But recent presidents have stretched that rule.
Biden’s strike on Iran’s nuclear sites — without Congressional authorization — echoes a dangerous pattern.
Remember Iraq in 2003? Vietnam? Mistakes made in haste.

Congressional authorization matters because war isn’t just strategy — it’s life and death.
For service members. For families. For global stability.

Your vote helps decide who has the power — and who respects it.
When leaders bypass Congress, they bypass us.
That’s why we speak up.
That’s why we vote.

“The American public deserves a say before we send our troops into harm’s way. That’s not a radical idea — that’s the Constitution.”–Senator Tim Kaine (D) Virginia