No More Presidential Wars

Floor Speech

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Ms. GABBARD. Mr. Speaker, Article I, section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the exclusive authority to declare war, but the last time Congress officially declared war was December 8, 1941, the day the U.S. entered World War II. Ever since, Congress has failed to uphold their constitutional responsibility and has instead ceded power to the President.

So we remain in a state of perpetual war, led by Presidents in both parties, at great cost to the American people, with no declaration of war by Congress and no input from the American people.

The direct and indirect costs of these Presidential wars are astounding. They take a toll on our troops, our veterans, and on the American people.

Since 9/11 alone, we have spent trillions of dollars on regime-change wars and nation building, while people in our community suffer and struggle because of a lack of resources here at home--not to mention the cost borne by our troops, those who pay the ultimate price as well as those who come home with wounds that are both visible and invisible.

The American people deserve accountability. Mr. Walter Jones and I have introduced bipartisan H. Res. 922 to make sure that Congress fulfills its constitutional role, ends Presidential wars, and has robust debate before making a decision to send our troops into battle.

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