Lawfare Archive: The Past, Present, and Future of War Powers with Brian Finucane and Matt Waxman

The Lawfare Podcast

The Lawfare Institute

Military, Intelligence, International Law, Constitutional Law, Rule Of Law, Politics, International Relations, News, Government, History, Diplomacy, Terrorism, National Security, Current Events, Law, Foreign Policy

4.7 • 6.2K Ratings

🗓️ 20 September 2025

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

From September 12, 2024: Without new congressional authorization for its post-Oct. 7 operations in the Middle East, the Biden administration has sought to legally justify its military activities in the region based on the president’s constitutional authority and the application of existing statutory authorities to operations against new adversaries. These executive branch arguments are the outgrowth of similar arguments presidential administrations have made over the last few decades, largely related to the requirements in the War Powers Resolution.

The International Crisis Group recently analyzed these arguments and related issues in a new report, “Bending the Guardrails: U.S. War Powers after 7 October.” Tyler McBrien and Matt Gluck of Lawfare spoke with Brian Finucane, a senior adviser for the U.S. Program at the International Crisis Group and an author of the report, and Matthew Waxman, a professor at Columbia Law School, about the Crisis Group’s report. They discussed the history relevant to the current war powers moment, how the Biden administration has continued to justify its operations without new legislative authority, and the possibility of war powers legal reform moving forward.

To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This fall marks 15 years of Lawfare, and we're celebrating the only way we know how
0:07.0	by gathering our community of readers, listeners, and contributors for an in-person celebration in Washington, D.C.
0:15.7	Get your tickets today at lawfairmedia.org slash 15 years.
0:27.0	Hey, it's Adam Grant from Worklife, a podcast from TED.
0:30.9	This episode is brought to you by FreshWorks.
0:33.6	Freshworks believes the complexity is the enemy of efficiency.
0:36.8	So stop wrestling with bloated, expensive service software that takes forever to implement an update,
0:41.9	where ROI is someday, not today.
0:44.6	You've been overcharged and underserved for way too long.
0:48.2	Uncomplicate with fresh service for IT and fresh desk for customer support.
0:53.5	And with FreshWork's AI-assisted service software, you'll work smarter, not harder.
0:58.6	FreshWorks uncomplicated.
1:00.7	Learn more at freshworks.com.
1:03.4	The dreaded CV scrolling, the never-ending interviewing.
1:08.0	If recruiting is a bit of a nightmare, try building a dream team that works
1:14.5	in perfect harmony. Post your vacancy on Guardian Jobs. It'll be seen by millions of like-minded
1:21.6	people looking for top roles in education, charity, public sector, sustainability and more.
1:27.4	Search Guardian Jobs recruiters and get
1:29.1	100 pounds off your next post. Quote podcast at the checkout. Tees and C's apply.
1:49.0	I'm Isabella Royale, Internet Lawfare, with an episode from the Lawfare from September 12th, 2004. On September 2nd, the U.S. Navy struck and sank a vessel from Venezuela,
1:56.0	which President Trump alleged was carrying 11 members of the Trin deragua gang, attempting to smuggle drugs into the United States.
2:03.4	This week, the U.S. military struck a second Venezuelan boat.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Lawfare Institute, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of The Lawfare Institute and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.