war powers

plural noun

1. the powers exercised by the president or by Congress during a war or a crisis affecting national security.

Word History and Origins

Origin of war powers¹

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

In February 2022, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich released a legal opinion claiming the state was under “invasion” by violent cartels and could invoke war powers to deploy National Guard troops to its southern border.

From Salon

In recent years, she’s been able to gain allies in her quest to rein in presidents’ expansive war powers — partly because elements of both parties had moved her way.

From Los Angeles Times

"Ask yourself who is the real enemy? A young low-level national guardsmen? Or the administration that is waging war in Ukraine, a non-NATO nation, against nuclear Russia without war powers?"

From Salon

In an effort to regain congressional war powers, the U.S.

From New York Times

Critics of repeal say Congress willingly yielded too much of its war powers to presidents, especially on the so-called “Forever Wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq that followed the 2001 al-Qaida attacks.

From Seattle Times