ABSTRACT
The War Powers Resolution of 1973 marks an area of continuing turmoil in executive-legislative relations. This chapter provides a short study of the War Powers Resolution in the broader context of executive-legislative relations. It presents a chronological summary of the record of executive-legislative relations during the resolution's passage and sub sequent implementation, followed by an issue-by-issue discussion of the provisions subject to continuing disagreement. The War Powers Resolution and the pressure for its enactment are best understood not simply as the consequence of a "runaway" presidency—as some people described the situation at the time—but also, in a different sense, of a "runaway" Congress. The executive branch, in contrast, tended to approach the issue as an illegitimate effort to rewrite the Constitution. The Senate's approach, under Jacob Javits's leadership, proceeded from an interpretation of the original intent of the authors of the Constitution.
