POL 554A - Constitutional Law and American Foreign Policy

The US Constitution structures and defines the powers of the United States. However, constitutions, almost by definition, do not always provide the details for how the various powers that are created are to be used in practice. At various junctures in American history, responses to security threats, both traditional and non-traditional, have created constitutional dilemmas for the US Government. In this course, we will explore how the US Supreme Court has attempted to resolve the constitutional conflicts over how foreign affairs are conducted by the United States. We will examine the justifications for the specific constitutional powers of both the legislative and executive branches and the potential sources of conflict that these powers create. Finally, we also explore the ways in which the presence of armed conflict or security crises shape constitutional law within the United States.