Did the US declare war?

[pmulcahy11b]

If so, some 4-star theater commanders could be promoted to 5-star rank, along with the Chairman of the JCS.

[Raellus]

Do you mean during the Twilight War?

If so, I think the answer is yes.

The War Powers Act of 1973 put limits on how presidents can use the military overseas without a declaration of war by Congress. Yes, every president since has pretty much ignored* it, and Congress has let them all get away with it, but I think the Commander in Chief's powers to direct a total war (like WWIII) would be seriously hampered without an official declaration of war and all that entails.

A declaration of war might also be a requirement of NATO protocols, but I don't know.

*The US hasn't declared war since WW2. Not in Korea, Vietnam, either Gulf War, etc.

Granted, none of those conflicts qualified as total war (full wartime mobilization of the military and economy).

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[Targan]

If a "state of war" obviously exists (like, say, being able to see the giant glowing glass bowls where cities used to be), does it legally amount to the same thing? Or maybe if it's got to that stage it's kind of a moot point anyway.

[kato13]

Do we know when the draft was reinstated in the US by congress? The War vote would probably be in the same session, I would think before as a draft would need justification.

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by kato13

Do we know when the draft was reinstated in the US by congress? The War vote would probably be in the same session, I would think before as a draft would need justification.

That's a great point, and I fully agree, but, since WW2, there's been a peacetime draft (think Elvis, 1957) and a draft during the [undeclared] Vietnam War .

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[chico20854]

In the v1 timeline, it appears that war was not declared.

Howling Wilderness states:

"From the bomb shelter under the east wing of
the White House (built during President Truman's tenure, and
never intended to withstand a direct hit), Vice President Pemberton,
after identifying herself, issued a proclamation of the existence
of a state of war (only Congress has the power to declare
war, and that body was not in session), and ordered retaliatory
strikes on the USSR. She was killed a few minutes later when
the missile detonated."

[kato13]

Originally Posted by Raellus

That's a great point, and I fully agree, but, since WW2, there's been a peacetime draft (think Elvis, 1957) and a draft during the [undeclared] Vietnam War .

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Well Chico gave us the answer, but there was always some conscription until 1973 (I am confused by this number as the laws were changed in 1971 IIRC), "conflicts" (I originally typed "wars" showing what i considered them) just increased the volume.

https://www.sss.gov/history-and-reco...on-statistics/


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conscr..._United_States

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by chico20854

In the v1 timeline, it appears that war was not declared.

Howling Wilderness states:

"From the bomb shelter under the east wing of
the White House (built during President Truman's tenure, and
never intended to withstand a direct hit), Vice President Pemberton,
after identifying herself, issued a proclamation of the existence
of a state of war (only Congress has the power to declare
war, and that body was not in session), and ordered retaliatory
strikes on the USSR. She was killed a few minutes later when
the missile detonated."

Are we sure that's the only canonical reference to a Constitutional basis for war between the USA and the USSR? It seems wild to me that the US Congress made no official declaration of war between November 1996, when the US committed troops to combat action against Soviet forces in East Germany, and the TDM almost a year later. What is Congress doing that whole time? Reauthorizing successive 60-day periods, in line with the War Powers Resolution of 1973? That seems like a waste of time, and something that would, procedurally and fiscally at the very least, interfere with conversion to the total war economy necessary to fight a large-scale, high-intensity war in multiple regions of the world against a rival world power.

Could there be some other reason, perhaps one related to the laws of succession, for the reference in HW? Maybe the VP was reasserting that a state of war existed, thereby giving herself the legal authorization to give the launch order to STRATCOM.

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