The president has many roles and powers to play after he/she is elected. One of the major roles is being the commander in chief of the armed forces. This is allows the president to exercise great powers that he/she possesses. It is a critical decision that needs a lot of care when making an appropriate decision. Even though the decision is difficult to make, it is sometimes very necessary and hence should be made when need be. However, reflection and care should be ensured when making the decision to ensure that negative consequences of the decision do not arise. This research will evaluate the role of the president as the commander in chief of the armed forces.
As a commander in chief of the armed forces, one of the powers that the president has is that he can order for deployment of more armed forces. Usually, the amount of people employed in the armed forces is large. However, for security reasons the president can order for an increase in the number of people employed in the armed forces. Therefore one of the powers of the president as the commander in chief of the armed forces is that he can order for deployment of more people in the armed forces (Genovese, 236).
The constitution of America has put in place measures to ensure that the president does not abuse the powers of serving as the commander in chief of the armed forces. As a consequence, the president has no power to declare wars in case of emergency and instead, the congress has the power of doing so. However, in some countries the president has the power to declare wars in cases of emergency. In United States, the president exercises this power by asking the congress to declare war against other nations when there is need (Sidlow, 221).
As the commander in chief of the armed forces, the president is assumed to be the head of state that is occupied by the troops of the country. For example, if America fights with another country and America wins, then the president of America heads the region that has been occupied by the American troops after the end of the war. For example, after the Second World War, American troops had occupied West Germany. In this regard, the then American president assumed the leadership of the region as the head of the state. Therefore as a commander in chief of the armed forces, the president heads any region that is occupied by the troops he/she heads.
Usually, the president exercises his power as the commander in chief of the armed forces by appointing various leaders in the forces. He is the only person with the powers to appoint generals who are to head the armed forces. These generals make important decisions about the armed forces. They are able to give orders to the forces when in the field and also come up with strategies when on the war grounds. The fact that the president appoints the leaders means that he has the power to control the activities of the forces although indirectly. The president can give directions to the leaders/generals that can then direct orders to the forces in filed.
Even though the president has the power to appoint generals to play their roles, the president still has the powers to exercise their powers. They can make major decisions about the forces, plan and strategize during the wars. These actions have been witnessed in history by various presidents of America. For example, President Johnson gave orders to specific places that the army was to target during the fight in Vietnam. President Truman also ordered the nuclear bomb at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This shows a direct action of the president in military activities. However, the president can delegate the powers to the generals he/she has appointed (Bardes, 236). This has been witnessed in history when President Bush delegated the roles of decision making to the generals in Iraq. They were therefore able to give orders, plan and execute the war with his delegation.
The president also has the power to put in place commissions and tribunals that are to investigate matters relating to the armed forces. The constitution allows the president to appoint people to preside a commission or a tribunal in any area that the troops he/she heads have occupied. In this regard, the president is able to solve the problems that may arise in the armed forces through these commissions. Therefore the president as a commander in chief of the armed forces plays a big role in solving problems that arise in the armed forces through the commissions and the tribunals that he/she has the powers to form.
The president also has the powers to appoint secret agents who can enter the enemy country to carry out various tasks. The secret agents can then collect important information that can help to ensure that the troops of the country win in the war. The agents can collect information regarding the strengths of the enemies and the resources that the enemies are using. In addition, the agents can tell movements of the enemies so that the parent country can be able to better plan to attack the enemy.
As the commander in chief of the armed forces, the president has the power to mobilize more resources to fund a war. The president can request for assistance from the citizens and other friendly citizens who can give more resources that can help finance the war (Bardes, 242). The resources can also be in form of human resources who are to help in the fight against the enemy.
Even though the congress makes the laws that are to govern the behavior of the armed forces, the president is able to exercise more power in some instances. The president has the power to amend the rules when necessary without even consulting the congress. For example, during the times of war, the president is able to change the rule governing the armed forces so that they can suit the needs of the country (Sidlow, 298).
The president has the right to get all the information about the armed forces all the time. In this regard, the president is briefed on any activities of the forces that he/she controls. This makes it possible for the president to make major decisions to ensure security of the country when there need. Therefore the president is always briefed on military issues that he/she controls.
The president also makes important decisions regarding the internal security. He makes sure that there are enough officers to deal with any crimes that are committed in the country. He also ensures that he/she has enough security due to the fact that the position he holds is a risky one. He is also highly compensated for his role as a commander in chief of the armed forces.
Generally, it can be seen that the president has many roles to play as the commander in chief of the armed forces to ensure security of the country. However, most of the roles are delegated to the generals who have close links to the president to ensure that the president is briefed effectively on the military activities. However, the constitution does not specify that the president is not supposed to directly control the armed forces. As a result, the president is the first general who can strategize and give orders during the times of war.
The constitution has put in place measures to limits the powers of the president as the commander in chief of the armed forces. The president therefore can only declare wars with the assent of the congress and the financial expenditure of the armed forces is usually approved by the congress. However, the president can violate these conditions and inform the congress later. This has been witnessed in various occasions in history whereby the president sends armed forces to a certain region and then informs the congress later.
Generally, it can be concluded that the roles of the president as the commander in chief of the armed forces increases in times of war. This is when the president can make various decisions without consulting the congress. Therefore it can be argued that this position is very critical but very necessary that involves making difficult decisions. The decisions should however be made very carefully to avoid causing more insecurity problems in the country.
Works cited.
Bardes, Barbara A, Mack C. Shelley, and Steffen W. Schmidt. American Government and Politics Today: The Essentials. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
Sidlow, Edward, and Beth Henschen. America at Odds. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2009. Print.
Sidlow, Edward. Govt. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2011. Print.
Genovese, Michael A. Encyclopedia of the American Presidency. New York: Facts On File, 2010. Internet resource.
