I thought this was an interesting and thoughtful discussion on The Colbert Report this week. The author, Gary Wills, argues in his book
Bomb Power that the national security apparatus that grew up around the executive branch in the nuclear age has given the president far too much military power (even in conventional war).
He makes a lot of great points, but the discussion is excellent because Colbert pushes back on some of his contentions (in a serious way), so that Willis digs deeper to clarify or provide nuance and shows he's thought this through. He's no pushover guest, but Colbert doesn't let his arguments slide, even if he might agree with some of them. For example, Colbert points out that the US Senate hasn't shown itself able to agree on simple things, let alone war, so if Congress re-asserts its constitutional role, there could be problems: "If you ask the Senate to push The Button, Richard Shelby will put a hold on, until the button is manufactured in Alabama."
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