US-Japan-ROK Trilateral Cooperation Act

This bill is a constitutionally sound exercise of the legislative power to provide for the common defence and to regulate foreign intercourse. The Congress has the express authority to declare war, raise and support armies, and provide for the calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions. Furthermore, the Treaty Clause (Article II, Section 2, Clause 2) vests the President with the power to make treaties with the advice and consent of the Senate, which necessarily implies the authority to engage in diplomatic negotiations. The bill does…

The proposed bill's objective of fostering diplomatic dialogue through regular meetings with foreign nations falls within the treaty and foreign affairs powers granted to the federal government. However, the Constitution vests the treaty power in the President and Senate jointly (Article II, Section 2), and Congress may not entangle itself in the conduct of foreign negotiations in a manner that displaces the Executive's preeminent role. Moreover, the establishment of a permanent congressional delegation as a standing body, with fixed membership and expenditures, raises concerns under the Tenth…

This bill unconstitutionally encroaches upon the executive branch's exclusive authority over foreign diplomacy and the appointment of officers of the United States. The Constitution vests the President with the power to make treaties and appoint ambassadors, and to conduct the nation's foreign relations as the sole organ of the federal government in that sphere. By mandating that the Department of State seek negotiations and by establishing a congressional delegation to represent the United States in a formal inter-parliamentary dialogue, the bill attempts to assign diplomatic functions to Mem…

The Constitution vests in Congress the power to regulate foreign commerce and to provide for the common defense and general welfare. The bill merely authorizes the Department of State to enter negotiations and establishes a framework for inter-parliamentary dialogue, which is a proper exercise of the legislative power to advise and consent on treaties and to conduct foreign affairs. It does not exceed the enumerated powers of Congress, nor does it infringe upon the executive's exclusive authority to conduct diplomacy, as it only sets guidelines for congressional participation. The necessary an…