Enumerated Powers: Congress' Constitutional Abilities

The legislative powers of the United States Congress are explicitly stated in the Constitution and are known as enumerated powers. These include the power to tax and spend for the general welfare and common defence, to borrow money, and to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among other states, and with Native American tribes. The Necessary and Proper Clause of the Constitution permits Congress to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers. Congress also has the power to declare war, raise and maintain armed forces, and make rules for the military.

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Power to tax and spend

The powers given to Congress by the US Constitution are called enumerated powers. These are powers that are explicitly defined by the Constitution. One such enumerated power is the power to tax and spend.

Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the Constitution, also known as the Spending Clause, states:

> 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.

This clause gives Congress the power to tax and spend for the general welfare of the country. However, there are some limitations and conditions on this power. For example, all taxes, duties, imposts, and excises must be uniform throughout the United States. Additionally, the Origination Clause in Article I, Section 7, Clause 1 of the Constitution stipulates that:

> All Bills for Raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on other Bills.

This clause ensures that while the House of Representatives has the primary power to initiate revenue bills, the Senate can also propose amendments to these bills. Furthermore, the Army Clause in Article I, Section 8, Clause 12 limits the time a congressional appropriation to raise and support the army can remain in effect to two years.

The power to tax and spend is a significant power of Congress, often referred to as the "power of the purse." It serves as a check on the executive branch, as Congress must authorize the collection of government revenues and their expenditure before executive branch agencies can spend any money. Congress has utilized this power in various ways, including funding the government annually since 1789, which aligns with the Constitution's two-year time limit on appropriations for the army.

The Supreme Court has also played a role in interpreting and shaping Congress's power to tax and spend. In Helvering v. Davis, the Court affirmed Social Security as an exercise of Congress's power to spend for the general welfare. The Court has also outlined five factors to judge the constitutional validity of federal spending, including that spending must be in pursuit of the general welfare and that Congress must unambiguously identify conditions attached to federal funds.

Authority to declare war

Article I, Section 8 of the US Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war. This is known as the "Declare War Clause", and it grants Congress the exclusive power to initiate hostilities.

The Declare War Clause states that "Congress shall have the power to declare war". However, it does not specify the form that this legislation must take, nor does the Constitution use the term "declaration of war". Despite this, it is generally agreed that the Clause grants Congress an exclusive power, meaning that presidents cannot declare war on their own authority.

Some commentators argue that the president has independent power to use military force, citing episodes such as President Truman ordering US forces into combat in Korea, and President Obama's use of airstrikes in Libya. These actions were not accompanied by a formal declaration of war. However, in these instances, Congress had authorised the use of military force through resolutions.

Since World War II, the United States has engaged in numerous military conflicts without a formal declaration of war. Instead, Congress has authorised the use of military force through other means. The last time the US formally declared war was in 1942, against Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania.

Ability to raise and maintain armed forces

The powers given to Congress by the Constitution are called enumerated powers and are mostly set out in Article I, Section 8. One of these powers is the ability to raise and maintain armed forces.

Article I of the Constitution gives Congress the power to "raise and support Armies", "provide and maintain a Navy", and provide for calling state militias into federal service. It also empowers Congress to "make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces". This includes the power to set up a system of criminal law binding on all servicemen, with its own substantive laws, courts, procedures, and appeals procedures.

Congress has broad power to structure the armed forces, assign duties to offices, and regulate military chains of command. For example, during the Civil War, Congress passed numerous statutes organizing and reorganizing the Union’s military. It also vested specific occupation powers in “district commanders” with responsibility for particular regions of the defeated South.

Congress's power to raise and maintain armed forces is limited by the Constitution, which states that "no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years." This limitation was prompted by the fear of standing armies. However, in 1904, Solicitor-General Hoyt ruled that this limitation did not extend to appropriations for the means and equipment used by the army.

The Supreme Court has affirmed Congress's "broad constitutional power" to raise and regulate armies and navies. This includes the power to classify and conscript manpower for military service. However, the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on the constitutionality of a "peacetime" draft.

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Regulation of commerce

The powers given to Congress by the Constitution are called enumerated powers and are outlined in Article I of the Constitution.

Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, also known as the Commerce Clause, grants Congress the power to "regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes." This clause has been a source of controversy and debate over the balance of power between the federal government and the states.

The interpretation of the word "commerce" in the Commerce Clause has been a subject of discussion, with some arguing it refers simply to "trade" or "exchange", while others claim it was intended to describe a broader range of commercial and social intercourse between citizens of different states. The Supreme Court has played a significant role in shaping the interpretation of the Commerce Clause through landmark cases, including Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp (1937), United States v. Darby (1941), Wickard v. Filburn (1942), United States v. Lopez (1995), Gonzales v. Raich (2005), and others.

The Commerce Clause has been used by Congress to justify its legislative power over state activities and citizens, particularly in economic matters. It allows Congress to regulate various economic activities, such as labour standards, minimum wage and maximum hour requirements, and trade activities that stretch beyond state borders. The clause also covers non-economic activities that substantially affect interstate commerce. For example, in Gonzales v. Raich (2005), the Supreme Court upheld the federal regulation of intrastate marijuana production, even when no goods were sold or transported across state lines, due to its potential indirect effect on interstate commerce.

Additionally, the Commerce Clause provides comprehensive powers over navigable waters, allowing the federal government to control and regulate all navigable waters in the United States for commercial purposes. This control extends to the entire stream and the stream bed below the ordinary high-water mark.

Impeachment powers

The powers given to Congress by the Constitution are called "enumerated powers" and are explicitly defined by the Constitution. Article I of the Constitution sets forth most of the powers of Congress, with additional powers granted by other articles and Constitutional amendments.

The United States Constitution grants Congress the authority to impeach federal officials, including the President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States. The House of Representatives has the sole power to initiate impeachment proceedings by approving articles of impeachment through a simple majority vote. The House has initiated impeachment proceedings more than 60 times, but there have only been 21 impeachments, including three presidents.

Once the House adopts the articles of impeachment, the Senate holds an impeachment trial, sitting as a High Court of Impeachment. The Senate has the sole power to try and convict impeached officials. In the case of a presidential impeachment trial, the Chief Justice of the United States presides.

To convict an impeached official, the Senate requires a two-thirds majority vote. If convicted, the official is removed from office and may be disqualified from holding public office in the future. However, impeachment proceedings do not preclude criminal liability, and the impeached official may still be subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to law.

The definition of "high Crimes and Misdemeanors," one of the grounds for impeachment, has long been debated and remains undefined in the Constitution. However, impeachment is a crucial tool for holding government officials accountable for violations of the law and abuses of power.

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