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“The British model gave the king the absolute power to make war. The American framers [of the Constitution] repudiated that form of government because their study of history convinced them that executives go to war not for the national interest but to satisfy personal desires of glory, ambition, and fame. The resulting military adventures were disastrous to their countries, both in lives lost and treasures squandered.” L. Fisher: http://loc.gov/law/help/usconlaw/pdf/war-fa-2008.pdf (The Framers were those involved in deciding and writing what is in the US Constitution, not picture frame makers. The dictionary says authors but it is apparently more complex: https://www.thefreedictionary.com/framer )

People were alarmed to learn that many Americans don’t recall any names of Holocaust concentration-death camps, but how many can’t recall who has the right to declare war? Perhaps because the Constitution has been ignored so many times? How many thought it was the US President and that Congress funds the war? See what the US Constitution says, further below.

US Congressman Thomas Massie:
“@RepThomasMassie
I haven’t read France’s or Britain’s “Constitution,” but I’ve read ours and no where in it is Presidential authority to strike Syria. 9:19 PM · Apr 13, 2018” https://twitter.com/RepThomasMassie/status/984964393489362944

Cornered Rats Jump
It is dangerous to leave Trump in charge of the USA, especially as he is under investigation for such serious crimes. His long-time friend, Israeli PM Netanyahu, didn’t want the US out of Syria, and also risks going to jail for corruption. Trump’s largest campaign donors, the Adelsons, probably want the US in Syria, as well. Russia would benefit from a broader war through increasing price of oil and gas, since Rosneft and Gazprom are government owned and the country is highly dependent upon exports for government revenue. Trump’s other oil and gas company supporters would benefit. US, Russian and Israeli arms makers would benefit too. Putin may gain politicially. Although Assad is cornered, Trump, Netanyahu and Putin appear to have more to gain than Assad by a chemical weapons attack. Cornered rats jump is a saying attributed to Putin, because of his childhood experience. But, why did France and the UK involve themselves?

Excerpt from the US Constitution:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Article. I….
Section. 8.
The Congress shall have Power To lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence and general Welfare of the United States; but all Duties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
To borrow Money on the credit of the United States;
To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States;
To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;
To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;
To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court;
To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations;
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;
To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of the Government of the United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, Arsenals, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;—And
To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof…. https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript


Howard Chandler Christy’s Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States

US Senator Bob Casey
“@SenBobCasey
While Bashar al-Assad must be held accountable for his unlawful use of chemical weapons against civilians, the strikes that are being carried out are being done without an authorization from Congress, which is unacceptable 9:16 PM · Apr 13, 2018” https://twitter.com/SenBobCasey/status/984963591332859906

US Senator “Sanders Statement on Trump’s Authority to Go to War in Syria Wednesday, April 11, 2018 WASHINGTON, April 11 – Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) issued the following statement Wednesday after President Donald Trump tweeted that he plans to strike the Assad regime in Syria: “President Trump has no legal authority for broadening the war in Syria. It is Congress, not the president, who determines whether our country goes to war and Congress must not abdicate that responsibility. We have been in Afghanistan for 17 years and Iraq for 15 years. The result has been massive regional instability, terrible loss of life and a cost of trillions of dollars. If President Trump believes that expanding the war in Syria will bring stability to the region and protect American interests, he should come to Congress with his ideas.” https://www.sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sanders-statement-on-trumps-authority-to-go-to-war-in-syria

US Congressman Adam Schiff
“@RepAdamSchiff
April 13, 2018
Bashar al-Assad’s chemical weapons attack against his own people merited a strong international response — these attacks must not be tolerated. However morally justified, the strikes risk serious escalation. Absent congressional authorization, they are also on thin legal ground.
Apr 11
As ‪@POTUS‬ considers military action in response to the Assad regime’s chemical attack, the legal basis for any strike should be a primary consideration, not an afterthought. Trump Admin still hasn’t explained basis for the 2017 strike. The President’s authority is not unlimited. https://twitter.com/RepAdamSchiff

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_Powers_Resolution

Friday the 13th, Trump Bombs Syria, Again
As recently as the bombing of Pearl Harbor, in 1941, bombing someone’s territory was considered a declaration of war. Syria is not American, Syria is not European, Syria is not Russian, and Syria is not part of Israel, either.

video link: http://youtu.be/3AP4JBXK2Bk
“THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary
For Immediate Release April 13, 2018
STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT TRUMP ON SYRIA
Diplomatic Room
9:01 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: My fellow Americans, a short time ago, I ordered the United States Armed Forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. A combined operation with the armed forces of France and the United Kingdom is now underway. We thank them both.

Tonight, I want to speak with you about why we have taken this action.

One year ago, Assad launched a savage chemical weapons attack against his own innocent people. The United States responded with 58 missile strikes that destroyed 20 percent of the Syrian Air Force.

Last Saturday, the Assad regime again deployed chemical weapons to slaughter innocent civilians — this time, in the town of Douma, near the Syrian capital of Damascus. This massacre was a significant escalation in a pattern of chemical weapons use by that very terrible regime.

The evil and the despicable attack left mothers and fathers, infants and children, thrashing in pain and gasping for air. These are not the actions of a man; they are crimes of a monster instead.

Following the horrors of World War I a century ago, civilized nations joined together to ban chemical warfare. Chemical weapons are uniquely dangerous not only because they inflict gruesome suffering, but because even small amounts can unleash widespread devastation.

The purpose of our actions tonight is to establish a strong deterrent against the production, spread, and use of chemical weapons. Establishing this deterrent is a vital national security interest of the United States. The combined American,

British, and French response to these atrocities will integrate all instruments of our national power — military, economic, and diplomatic. We are prepared to sustain this response until the Syrian regime stops its use of prohibited chemical agents.

I also have a message tonight for the two governments most responsible for supporting, equipping, and financing the criminal Assad regime.

To Iran, and to Russia, I ask: What kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women, and children?

The nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep. No nation can succeed in the long run by promoting rogue states, brutal tyrants, and murderous dictators.

In 2013, President Putin and his government promised the world that they would guarantee the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons. Assad’s recent attack — and today’s response — are the direct result of Russia’s failure to keep that promise.

Russia must decide if it will continue down this dark path, or if it will join with civilized nations as a force for stability and peace. Hopefully, someday we’ll get along with Russia, and maybe even Iran — but maybe not.

I will say this: The United States has a lot to offer, with the greatest and most powerful economy in the history of the world.

In Syria, the United States — with but a small force being used to eliminate what is left of ISIS — is doing what is necessary to protect the American people. Over the last year, nearly 100 percent of the territory once controlled by the so-called ISIS caliphate in Syria and Iraq has been liberated and eliminated.

The United States has also rebuilt our friendships across the Middle East. We have asked our partners to take greater responsibility for securing their home region, including contributing large amounts of money for the resources, equipment, and all of the anti-ISIS effort. Increased engagement from our friends, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt, and others can ensure that Iran does not profit from the eradication of ISIS.

America does not seek an indefinite presence in Syria under no circumstances. As other nations step up their contributions, we look forward to the day when we can bring our warriors home. And great warriors they are.

Looking around our very troubled world, Americans have no illusions. We cannot purge the world of evil, or act everywhere there is tyranny.

No amount of American blood or treasure can produce lasting peace and security in the Middle East. It’s a troubled place. We will try to make it better, but it is a troubled place. The United States will be a partner and a friend, but the fate of the region lies in the hands of its own people.

In the last century, we looked straight into the darkest places of the human soul. We saw the anguish that can be unleashed and the evil that can take hold. By the end of the World War I, more than one million people had been killed or injured by chemical weapons. We never want to see that ghastly specter return.

So today, the nations of Britain, France, and the United States of America have marshaled their righteous power against barbarism and brutality.

Tonight, I ask all Americans to say a prayer for our noble warriors and our allies as they carry out their missions.

We pray that God will bring comfort to those suffering in Syria. We pray that God will guide the whole region toward a future of dignity and of peace.

And we pray that God will continue to watch over and bless the United States of America.

Thank you, and goodnight. Thank you.
END 9:09 P.M. EDT ”

From the Department of Defense:
“Mattis, Dunford Detail Attacks on Syrian Chemical Arsenal
By Jim GaramoneDoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, April 13, 2018 —
U.S., British and French air and naval forces launched attacks against the Syrian government’s chemical weapon arsenal in retaliation for the use of such weapons on civilians, Defense Secretary James N. Mattis and Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Pentagon news conference tonight.

“As the world knows, the Syrian people have suffered terribly under the prolonged brutality of the Assad regime,” the secretary said. “On April 7, the regime decided to again defy the norms of civilized people showing callous disregard for international law by using chemical weapons to murder women, children and other innocents. We and our allies find these atrocities inexcusable.”

President Donald J. Trump ordered the strikes to stop the regime from using such inhumane weapons again. Mattis said stopping the atrocities is in the vital national interests of the United States.

Research and Development Facilities
The strikes hit Syrian leader Bashar Assad’s chemical weapon research, development and production facilities. The strikes tonight were far harder than the ones last year, when the United States launched 58 missiles against the Shayrat air base following a chemical attack.

“Obviously, the Assad regime did not get the message last year,” Mattis said.
The strikes now send a very clear message to Syrian leaders “that they should not perpetrate another chemical weapons attack for which they will be held accountable,” the secretary said.

Mattis emphasized that the strikes were directed against the Syrian regime, and the strike planners went to great lengths to avoid civilian and foreign casualties. “It is a time for all civilized nations to urgently unite to end the Syrian civil war by supporting the United Nations backed Geneva peace process,” the secretary said.

The three nations forces were integrated throughout the planning and execution of the operation, Dunford said. “The targets that were struck and destroyed were specifically associated with the Syrian regime chemical weapons program,” the chairman said.

The first target was a scientific research center in the greater Damascus area. The military facility was a center for research, development, production and testing of chemical and biological agents, the general said. The second target was a chemical weapons storage facility west of Homs. “We assess this was the primary location of Syrian sarin and precursor production equipment,” he said. “The third target … contained both a chemical weapons storage facility and an important command post.”

The strikes should result in a long-term degradation of Syria’s chemical and biological warfare capabilities, the chairman said. “The strike was not only a strong message to the regime that their actions were inexcusable, but it also inflicted maximum damage without unnecessary risks to civilians,” Dunford said.

The strike was also planned to mitigate the risk to Russian forces that are supporting the Assad regime, the general said.

More than double the amount of ordnance used in last year’s strike was used in this one, Dunford said. He said there were reports of Syrian anti-aircraft actions, but it is too early to assess the effectiveness. There were no allied casualties.

The strike is meant to deter Assad from contemplating another attack, and allied forces are ready to continue the action if Assad continues to use these banned weapons, Mattis said.” https://www.defense. gov/News/Article/Article/1493636/mattis-dunford-detail-attacks-on-syrian-chemical-arsenal/

From the Dept. Of Defense:
“U.S., Allies Strike Syrian Targets in Response to Regime’s Chemical Attacks
By Jim Garamone DoD News, Defense Media Activity
WASHINGTON, April 13, 2018 —
U.S., French and British forces have struck targets in Syria as punishment for Syrian leader Bashar Assad using chemical weapons against his own people.

President Donald J. Trump announced the combined force launched precision strikes against the chemical weapons capabilities.

The strike against the capabilities is designed to stop Assad from using the banned weapons.

This is the second time the United States struck Assad’s chemical network. In April 2017, Trump ordered an attack against the Shayrat air base after Syrian aircraft at the base dropped bombs containing the nerve agent sarin. Some 58 missiles hit the aircraft and chemical weapons facilities at the base.

But the Syrian dictator did not learn the lesson, and the regime again launched poison gas against its own people April 7.

‘Evil and Despicable Act’

“This massacre was a significant escalation in a pattern of chemical weapons use by that very terrible regime,” Trump said during an announcement from the White House tonight. “The evil and despicable attack left mothers and fathers, infants and children thrashing in pain and gasping for air. These are not actions of a man; they are crimes of a monster instead.”

Chemical weapons have been banned since their widespread use during World War I. “The purpose of our action tonight is to establish a strong deterrent against the production, spread and use of chemical weapons,” the president said. “Establishing this deterrent is a vital national security interest of the United States. The combined American, French and British response to these atrocities will integrate all instruments of our national power.”

The president said the United States is prepared to sustain the response “until the Syrian regime stops its use of prohibited chemical agents.”

The Syrian regime is propped up by Russia and Iran. “To Iran and Russia I ask: What kind of a nation wants to be associated with a mass murderer of innocent men, women and children?” the president said. “The nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep. No nation can succeed in the long run, by supporting rogue states, brutal tyrants and murderous dictators.”

Defense Secretary James N. Mattis called the chemical attack “beyond the pale” when he testified before the House Armed Services Committee yesterday. The attack, he said, was in “the worst interest of civilization itself.”

Not a Widening of U.S. Involvement

The action does not indicate a widening of U.S. involvement in Syria, the president said. U.S. troops are in eastern Syria to advise Syrian Democratic Forces in actions to eliminate the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.

Chemical attacks, however, are a different and horrendous exception. The use of such weapons on civilians is particularly heinous. “In 2013, President [Vladimir] Putin and his government promised the world they would guarantee the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons,” Trump said. “Assad’s recent attack and today’s response are a direct result of Russia’s failure to keep that promise.”

The Russians are now complicit in Syrian use of such weapons, and the nation must decide if they will continue its partnership with Assad or “join civilized nations as a force for stability and peace,” the president said.

The United States remains committed to the Geneva process and the U.N.-orchestrated effort. Russia continues to block this.” https://www.defense. gov/News/Article/Article/1493600/us-allies-strike-syrian-targets-in-response-to-regimes-chemical-attacks/

“Statement by Louis Fisher
Specialist in Constitutional Law Law Library of the Library of Congress
Appearing before the Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight House Committee on Foreign Affairs “War Powers for the 21st Century: The Constitutional Perspective” April 10, 2008 ” http://loc.gov/law/help/usconlaw/pdf/war-fa-2008.pdf