Presidential executive powers vs. Congress
March 27, 2015
Harold Bruff
Recently 47 Republican senators threatened to overturn any accord made with
Iran limiting their nuclear programs in exchange for sanctions relief -- even to
the extent they sent a letter to Iran warning that Congress could void the
agreement.
Their argument -- Pres. Barack Obama can’t use his executive powers to bypass Congress when it comes to treaties or agreements with other nations.
On the contrary the president does have the right to use executive powers in
these matters, says CU-Boulder law professor and constitutional law expert
Harold Bruff, and he has history to back him up.
CUT 1 “Every president has negotiated executive agreements with foreign
nations, beginning with George Washington. Not all of them take the form of
treaties. The difference really lies in politics. Presidents use executive
agreements for delicate foreign negotiations -- they have done it many times.
(:19) George Washington established that. It’s been clear ever since. Another
thing that Washington established is the United States has to speak with one
voice to foreign nations -- that voice is the president’s.” (:32)
Bruff finds the letter not only inappropriate since it attempts to undermine
sensitive negotiations, but ironic as well since it was a very popular
Republican president who used executive powers in 1981 to end the Iranian
hostage crises.
CUT 2 “A simple example that’s directly pertinent is the settlement of the
Iranian hostage crisis in 1979. The United States entered in an executive
agreement with the government of Iran, through the government of Algeria,
because Iran would not speak to us directly. (:16) That agreement was never
sent to the Senate. President Reagan came into office and ratified it and it has
been honored ever since.” (:24)
He says another example of a president using executive powers to conduct
foreign affairs happened during World War Two.
CUT 3 “A famous one was Franklin Roosevelt’s trade of old destroyers for
British bases before the start of WWII. His actions in summits at Yalta and
other places are other simple examples of international agreements that
presidents make without involving Congress. There are thousands of them.”
(:23)
March 31 is the target date for a preliminary accord with Iran, Europe, Russia,
China and the U.S leading to a final deal by the end of June that would crimp
Iran's nuclear programs in exchange for sanctions relief.
If a deal is reached Buff seriously doubts that Congress, or whoever becomes
America’s next president, would overturn it due to a history of incoming
president’s honoring a predecessors agreements.
CUT 4 “Presidents have always known that if they enter an agreement
like this with a foreign nation their successors are under great pressure to
hold to it and there is no strong record anywhere of presidents disavowing
their predecessors’ executive agreements.” (:18)
Buff is a professor of constitutional and administrative law and an author of
several books including his most recent -- Untrodden Ground: How Presidents
Interpret the Constitution.
-CU-