Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 alpha 4/15/85; site pucc-i
Path: utzoo!lsuc!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ihnp4!inuxc!pur-ee!pucc-j!pucc-i!afb
From: afb@pucc-i (Michael Lewis)
Newsgroups: net.politics
Subject: Re: American Foreign Policy
Message-ID: <1243@pucc-i>
Date: Thu, 9-Jan-86 16:18:28 EST
Article-I.D.: pucc-i.1243
Posted: Thu Jan  9 16:18:28 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 17-Jan-86 03:35:19 EST
References: <41@ubc-vision.UUCP>
Organization: Purdue University Computing Center
Lines: 19
Summary: duties of the Legislative branch...

In article <41@ubc-vision.UUCP>, mokhtar@ubc-vision.UUCP (Farzin Mokhtarian) writes:
> The meaning of "with the Legislative branch overseeing" is vague. Just how
> much of a say does it have?
>   
>    Farzin Mokhtarian

     The Congress' oversight responsibilities with respect to foreign policy
extend to declarations of war (I realize that past presidents have had consider-
able room to maneuver on this one), and budgetary considerations (e.g. funding
for Contras, foreign aid to various countries).

     I dispute that you could ever expect Congress (that beast with 400+ 
stomachs and no brain) to decide what brand of toilet paper to use in 
Congressional bathrooms in "time t", let alone an important foreign policy
issue.  I don't think that large parliamentary bodies are well suited to
making decisions of this kind, and I think that the authors of our Constitution
recognized this.

     Mike Lewis @ Purdue University