We are long past the point at which constitutional arguments have much hope of restraining the American political class, either at home or abroad. They are still worth making, though, since they serve to show the two major parties’ contempt for American law and tradition.

In the wake of the Vietnam War Congress passed the War Powers Resolution of 1973. As the history books would have it, Congress thereby restrained presidential war powers and reasserted traditional congressional prerogatives in foreign policy as envisioned by the Constitution.

Not so. Not even close to being so.

It is common practice in DC for politicians to stuff spending bills with all sorts of additional bad legislation — the policy equivalent of being overcharged for a meal that gives you food poisoning. This week’s vote is no exception.

According to most economic experts, when an economy falls into a recession the central bank can pull it out of the slump by means of money pumping. This way of thinking implies that money pumping can somehow grow the economy. Indeed US historical evidence supposedly does show that easy money policy seems to work.

I was asked recently by a Facebook friend the following:

Updated: The Vote Failed 55-44

A bipartisan group of senators (Mike Lee, Bernie Sanders, and Chris Murphy) are forcing a vote on the US involvement in the Yemen conflict with a vote expected sometime today. The timing of the vote coincides with a visit by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, whose country has waged war again Yemen since 2015.

Media outlets from The Washington Post to CNN are now calling for changes in law that will allow children to vote.