Sen. Rand Paul at National Review with
encouraging words for the libertarians and non-interventionists
on Mitt Romney’s recent pronouncements on presidential warmaking
power:

Anyone who believes President Obama is less aggressive
internationally than his predecessors is mistaken.

I do not yet know if I will find a Romney presidency more
acceptable on foreign policy. But I do know that I must oppose the
most recent statements made by Mitt Romney in which he says he, as
president, could take us to war unilaterally with Iran, without any
approval from Congress. His exact words were:

I can assure you if I’m president, the Iranians will
have no question but that I will be willing to take military action
if necessary to prevent them from becoming a nuclear threat to the
world. I don’t believe at this stage, therefore, if I’m president
that we need to have a war powers approval or special authorization
for military force. The president has that capacity
now.

This is a misreading of the role of the president and Congress
in declaring war. 

The Constitution clearly states that it is Congress that has the
power to declare war, not the president. The War Powers Act also
clearly states that U.S. forces are to engage in hostilities only
if the circumstances are “pursuant to (1) a declaration of war, (2)
specific statutory authorization or (3) a national emergency
created by attack upon the United States, its territories or
possessions, or its armed forces.”

Absent these criteria, the president has no authority to declare
war.

Even if the president believes he has such authority, the War
Powers Act goes on to require the president to seek congressional
approval within 60 days of conflict.

No president is above the law or above the Constitution….

I will hold accountable and oppose any actions from any
president, Republican or Democrat, if he declares war without
congressional consent.

Good on Sen. Paul. Even in cold political calculation mode, it
shows he still knows the Ron Paul non-interventionist base is
important to his political future, which it is.

I blogged on the controversies surrounding Rand Paul’s Romney
endorsement
here and
here. I discuss Rand Paul’s role in his father’s movement in my
new book
Ron Paul’s Revolution: The Man and the Movement He
Inspired, and in the
excerpt from it in the July issue of
Reason.