President Trump told Kim Jong Un to brace for America's "fire and fury" should he continue to threaten us. In case the North Korean dictator didn't get the message, Trump tweeted Friday that the United States is ready, "locked and loaded" to respond to North Korea should they take any aggressive action.
Military solutions are now fully in place,locked and loaded,should North Korea act unwisely. Hopefully Kim Jong Un will find another path!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 11, 2017
Trump's supporters were pleased with the president's tough talk, especially after years of "strategic patience" from the Obama administration. Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), however, said not so fast. On Twitter, Amash asked Trump to take a closer look at the War Powers Resolution, which states that a president must go through Congress to enforce certain military actions.
War Powers Res does not allow president to take *offensive* military action without congressional approval. People routinely ignore §2(c). pic.twitter.com/y9u7v3sQUS
— Justin Amash (@justinamash) August 11, 2017
If Trump is considering a nuclear strike, Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) also made the case that it could be unconstitutional. He is proposing that the president seek congressional approval before launching a first nuclear strike.
"Right now one person can launch thousands of nuclear weapons, and that's the president. No one can stop him," he said. "Under the law, the secretary of defense has to follow his order. There's no judicial oversight, no congressional oversight."
As the White House and Congress debate proper military procedure, they should be in agreement that North Korea must answer for its threatening rhetoric, ballistic missile testing and its continuing to take steps toward becoming a nuclear power. On Friday, the Korean Central News Agency declared that they could squash America into "jelly" with its capabilities.
At this point, it is all talk.
President Trump's Secretary of Defense James Mattis took the same approach to Kim Jong Un's regime rhetoric, giving North Korea his own version of "fire and fury."
“The DPRK should cease any consideration of actions that would lead to the end of its regime and the destruction of its people,” Mattis said.
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