America was born in war, and we have been involved in quite a few of them over the years. A nation born of war will, of course, have a template for waging it. It is duly set forth in our founding document: we’re at war when Congress declares it. 

Not!

That there “Congress” thingy hasn’t declared a war since World War II, and since then we have invaded, overthrown and bombed the hell out of so many nations that I would be up against the word count limit to list them. Suffice it to say that the Vietnam “War” never was; It was a “police action”. Fifty thousand Americans got killed, but it wasn’t a war. Congress never declared it. 

 Since then, it has been a sort of open season. Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Panama– it’s not so much “Shoot first, ask questions later,” it’s more “Let’s just shoot.” There won’t be any particular questions because, hey, there wasn’t any war to begin with.

The rise of the undeclared war coincides with the rise of the use of the term “war” to refer to activities that do not involve firearms or weapons of any kind. It was during the 1960’s– while Lyndon Johnson was overseeing the carpet-bombing of Indochina- that we launched our “war on poverty.” Then there was the “war on drugs.” Not too long ago, Democrats spoke of the “war on women,” which consisted of little more than Republican opposition to abortion. 

It’s all a war now, right? Now that we are waging actual war all the time– deploying troops and weapons, killing people and blowing things up overseas so regularly that the public tunes it out– the word “war” is available. It has lost its actual meaning, but it’s so evocative! So powerful…

Now, these linguistic and governmental lapses have come home to roost. Trump says we are under attack, it’s an “invasion,” and that’s why he can use an ancient provision meant to apply to agents of nations making war on the U.S.– an actual worry in the early days– to deport people with tattoos. And who is to say he’s wrong?

If anybody wanted to say he’s wrong because we’re not at war until the Congress says we’re at war, their parents or grandparents should have made that point about 70 years ago. If anybody wanted to object to the loose use of the word “war” to describe any sort of opposition to anything, they are probably me. Or some other irrelevant voice in our national cacophony.      

These days we are, literally, at war all the time. If there’s a distinction between Biden and Trump it isn’t, for instance, who bombs the Houthis in Yemen. Biden did; Trump too. Trump might tell you that his bombs are bigger; that’s where we are.

It was a good plan, setting forth in our founding document a specific and exacting process by which our nation would commit to that most extreme act, war. Then again, in those days the Congress was a serious place where earnest citizens discussed weighty matters.

Now, Marjorie Taylor-Greene heads a committee. Anymore, Congress doesn’t have to weigh in on war and peace. It doesn’t have to weigh in on much of anything, actually; Trump issues another executive order, and the courts object or don’t, and the Trump administration either obeys the court or it doesn’t. Congress is a channel on TV that you probably don’t watch much anymore.

Eric Kuhn lives in Middletown.