e Armed Forces, the power to make treaties (with the advice and consent of the Senate), and the power to appoint government officials (including ambassadors). These three explicit powers form the basis for the President's authority in national security and foreign affairs. Many issues considered as falling under the rubric of national security are classified as such because they arise out of the President's authority as commander in chief of the armed forces. The treaty-making power very quickly led a member of the House of Representatives to state in 1799 that the President "is the sole organ of the nation in its external relations and its sole representative with foreign nations" (Corwin, 1957, p. 177). Since then, the president has attained the most crucial role in the foreign policy process: that of the "ultimate decider" and "decision-maker of last resort" (Crabb & Holt, 1992, p. 6).
The real basis for the President's powers over national security issues is the combination of the grant of power as commander in chief and the clause in Article II, Section 3 which places a duty upon the President to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed." First used by President Lincoln during the Civil War, the powers emanating from the combination of these two clauses gives the President vast authority to take actions as the commander in chief (Corwin, 1957, p. 229). Customary practice since the beginning of the 20th Century has held that these powers may be exercised not only during a time of declared war, but at any time when an emergency or crisis dictates. Since the end of the Second World War, the executive branch has justified the exercise of many extraordinary powers as being necessary for the national security. And in the modern age, national security may be threatened in many different ways and by many different actors (Corwin 1957, pp. 261-62).
The chief Executive decision organ is the National Security Council (NSC), creat...