WASHINGTON — Can the president fight the war he wants? Can Congress fund any war it wants? Are there constitutional and legal requirements that must be met before starting a war?

These questions should be addressed as part of a national debate over U.S. military involvement in Ukraine and Israel. Unfortunately, there was no debate. The media repeats what the CIA tells them, Congress follows suit, and only a few websites and podcasts – mine, “Judging Freedom” on YouTube, among them – challenging the government’s reckless, immoral, illegal and unconstitutional wars.

The Supreme Court has ruled that all power in the federal government comes from the Constitution and no other source. Congress, however, has managed to extend its reach beyond the confines of the Constitution to the national level by spending money in areas it cannot regulate and buying the respect of the states by bribing them; and in foreign policy by financing wars that it cannot legally declare.

Congress cannot legally declare war on Russia or Iran, since there is no militarily justified reason to do so. Russia and Iran pose no credible threat to American national security. Additionally, the United States has no treaties with Ukraine or Israel that trigger a U.S. military defense. But Congress nevertheless spends money on these wars.

According to the Constitution, only Congress can declare war on a nation or group. The last time she did so was to initiate American involvement in World War II. But Congress has ceded limited authority to presidents and allowed them to wage undeclared wars, such as the War Powers Resolution of 1973 and President George W. Bush’s disastrous and criminal invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

Last week, the Biden administration announced it would send about 100 troops to Israel to man the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, system that the United States has sent there. Then the administration announced it was sending a second THAAD unit and 100 additional troops. THAADs will likely be used in Israel’s defense against Iran.

Not only has Congress not declared war on Iran; she did not authorize the use of American military forces against her. Yet he gave President Joe Biden a blank check and authorized him to spend it on military equipment for Israel as he saw fit, without a legal or even credible U.S. military objective.

Biden also promised to continue giving Ukraine everything it needs “as long as it takes.” The time it takes to do what? The elimination of Russian troops from Ukraine and Crimea or that of Russian President Vladimir Putin are not realistic American military objectives. Last week, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he feared Putin had his eyes on Poland. This is alarmist nonsense.

American involvement in Vietnam began the same way: no declaration of war; no authorization for the use of military force; no clear US military objective; shamelessly preaching the discredited domino theory of country collapse; a gradual build-up of American troops as technicians, advisors and instructors; then a congressionally supported war that saw the deployment of half a million American troops, 10 percent of whom returned home in body bags. And for what?

We do not know how many American troops are in Ukraine. We know they are involved in hostilities because much of the offensive equipment Biden is sending requires American know-how to operate and maintain. And in some weapons, American troops target Russian forces and pull the trigger.

Are American soldiers killing Russian soldiers? Yes. Will American troops soon shoot down Iranian pilots aboard their planes? Yes. None of this was authorized by Congress, but Congress paid for it all.

Now let’s return to the Constitution. The War Powers Resolution, which requires the president to notify Congress of the use of U.S. military force, is unconstitutional because it involves Congress ceding to the president one of its essential functions: declaring war.

The Supreme Court has called the delegation of essential functions a violation of the separation of powers because when one branch of the federal government cedes its powers to another, the receiving branch threatens the constitutional order and potentially endangers personal liberty.

Nonetheless, Biden has not informed Congress of his intention to use U.S. troops in Ukraine or Israel.

Don’t be surprised if Biden secretly gives notice of war powers resolution to the Gang of Eight. It’s Congress within Congress. It consists of the chairmen and ranking members of the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, as well as the Republican and Democratic leaders of the House and Senate with whom the president legally shares secrets.

This too is unconstitutional. Just as Congress cannot delegate its war powers to the president, neither can it delegate them to the Gang of Eight. The concept of the Gang of Eight is contrary to democratic values. Informing them of any violence that the president is planning is done under an oath of secrecy. What kind of democracy works and kills in secret?

The various treaties to which the United States is a party limit its conduct of war to what is defensive, proportionate, and reasonable. So if a foreign power is about to strike – like September 11 or December 7, 1941, while the government was asleep – the president can strike first in order to protect the United States. Beyond imminent attack, the basis of the war must be Real, the adversary’s anti-American military behavior must be serious, the objective of the war must be clear and achievable, and the means must be proportionate to the threat.

Did Russia or Iran threaten the United States? No. What serious acts have they committed against the United States? None. What is Biden’s clear military objective? He won’t say it.

Does Congress or the President respect the Constitution? This is not the case. They also don’t understand that the problem with finding monsters to kill in the world is that they have a way of tracking you home.

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To learn more about Judge Andrew Napolitano, visit