Jessica Sensi
Blog Post 3
The use of drones and autonomous
warfare has allowed the act of waging war to become much easier, and in turn
diminish principles of American democracy. The executive branch, or the
president, is the commander-in-chief and has the power to make any calls he
deems necessary. However, Congress has the power to declare war and this
separation of powers is part of the checks and balances system to ensure that
no one branch of government gains too much power. Because Barack Obama makes
most calls regarding targeted killing and autonomous warfare, there isn’t much
debate in Congress concerning this type of warfare. The War Powers Resolution
requires the President to notify Congress at least 48 hours in advance that he
will be committing armed forces to military action. This doesn’t seem to happen,
as the use of autonomous warfare is almost instant upon the President’s call or
those who are piloting them at bases across the country. Because it is so easy
to take a shot, it seems silly to have to get approval from Congress.
Throughout his term, Barack Obama has
notified Congress of times when he has sent humans or combatants to these
places to fight, which is the right thing to do, but drone use has become much
more common and I think that there should be a notification requirement before
using them. When writing the War Powers Resolution, there wasn’t a distinction
or clarification regarding whether or not attacks had to consist of people or
not, but I don’t think it should. Since this type of warfare is becoming much
more common, it will be used in more confrontations and it will become the new
reality of war. Singer talks about this in the New York Times article we read and he explains how this lack of “a
check” that is supposed to take place causes the government to seem to have
more power within the executive branch. This is a huge part of why some people
are opponents of drone use. The government claims it is fighting for American
ideals and values; however, there is a lack of the basic democratic principle
of separation of powers.
On another note, Singer explains
that there isn’t much transparency within the government surrounding their use
of drones. It isn’t being debated throughout Congress, and there isn’t much
information being given to the American people from the government,
specifically explaining missions. There isn’t enough transparency and this is a
key aspect of a democratic regime. Throughout news outlets, there is much
debate, however I think the American people deserve more information from the
government including what the missions are, how they are being executed, and
how they are establishing their targets. I think this information will allow
for more debate and in turn, more opinions and voices will be heard. I know personally
that I would be more open to be part of the debate if I knew much more about
the actions the government is taking regarding their use of autonomous warfare.
Right now, people are making a lot of assumptions because of this lack of
information.
Hi Jessica,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that as our military technologies change, our ways of waging war have changed as well. These shifts need to be appropriately reflected in our democratic structure of government. There is a need for more information, though I think that that is not possible at the time of the drone strikes; it seems right and in keeping with our democratic principles that at least some parts of the information should be declassified, obviously after a certain time frame, though on the other hand this would offer greater insight to various terrorist elements about how the U.S carries out these operations. What do you think about this?
I agree with you, it probably wouldn't be as timely as the public would want. However, it will take some time to gather the information they decide to release. Alexei brought up a great point to me that it could jeopardize our national security by giving information to potential enemies/threats. I think there needs to be a balance, in order to alleviate hypocrisy as the government is supposed to be transparent, but necessary to be less transparent to maintain security.
DeleteJessica,
ReplyDeleteI agree with all the points you have made. The use of drones is quicker, safer (for the united states), and arguably more efficient. I however think it would be very difficult for the US Government to educate the public on what we are doing with our drones. There are 57 drones in the air as we speak, each doing their own mission. I also "think" (because im not exactly sure) that releasing such information could jeopardize our national security or give insight to our enemies on how we are using these drones. I think to some degree the goverment can release information to us, but not the information we are all looking for. When we have troops on the ground in Iraq, we know there position, but we never know their missions, targets, and direct field operation orders.
You're right, I didn't think about how it could affect our national security to release this information. However, besides attacks on people who could be possible threats to the country, I think some information regarding special missions should be given. General goals of the use of drones, not too specific.
DeleteJess,
ReplyDeleteDo you think that Congress should be notified for each drone attack or that it needs to have okayed the larger mission (i.e. drone usage in Yemen)
I think that notifying Congress for each drone attack is a bit excessive, but definitely they should be notified for missions. But over time, giving feedback on attacks to both Congress and the American public will be much better as to just keep everyone informed.
DeleteSo do you think that only missions on survellience and such should be talked about in congress?
DeleteAny type of long-term mission should be brought to Congress
Delete