Power Without Constraint: The Post-9/11 Presidency and National Security

As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama criticized the George W. Bush administration for its unrestrained actions in matters of national security. In secret Justice Department memos, President Bush’s officials had claimed for the executive branch total authority to use military force in response to threats of terrorism. They set aside laws made by Congress, even criminal laws prohibiting torture and warrantless surveillance. Candidate Obama promised to restore the rule of law and make a clean break with the Bush approach. President Obama has not done so. Why? In a thorough comparison of the Bush and Obama administrations’ national security policies, Chris Edelson demonstrates that President Obama and his officials have used softer rhetoric and toned-down legal arguments, but in key areas—military action, surveillance, and state secrets—they have simply found new ways to assert power without meaningful constitutional or statutory constraints. Edelson contends that this legacy of the two immediately post-9/11 presidencies raises crucial questions for future presidents, Congress, the courts, and American citizens. Where is the political will to restore a balance of powers among branches of government and adherence to the rule of law? What are the limits of authority regarding presidential national security power? Have national security concerns created a permanent shift to unconstrained presidential power?

About the Author :
Chris Edelson is assistant professor of government in the School of Public Affairs and a fellow with the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, both at American University. He is the author of Emergency Presidential Power: From the Drafting of the Constitution to the War on Terror, which was awarded the Crader Family Book Prize in American Values.

Review :
"A clear and powerfully argued direct comparison of the policies and rhetoric of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, demonstrating that they are more alike than different in their approaches to combating terrorism."--Michael A. Genovese, author of The Power of the American Presidency --Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director, American Civil Liberties Union "A comprehensive, accessible study of presidential power in the twenty-first century. Edelson demonstrates why scholars of constitutional development must include all three branches, both political parties, and institutional sources. Rigorous and compelling." --Jasmine Farrier, University of Louisville "Edelson underscores the damage done to constitutional government by presidential initiatives. Scholars often define presidential power broadly without paying attention to basic principles of law and self-government. To his credit, Edelson keeps those fundamental values in clear focus." --Louis Fisher, the Constitution Project "A must-read for lovers of liberty and the rule of law, and for anyone else who is serious about understanding the dire reality the Republic is confronting because of executive prerogative." --Congress & the Presidency "An ambitious, impressive historical and constitutional analysis of national security power in the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama." --Mitchel A. Sollenberger, coauthor of The President's Czars