ANALYSIS – Pressing national security concerns stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Iran’s nuclear development are highlighting anew just how much the Senate has allowed its capacity to oversee treaties and international agreements to deteriorate.
In large part due to political polarization, the Senate often cannot muster the two-thirds support needed to approve major treaties. With Congress divided, presidents have increasingly skirted the two-thirds vote by entering international agreements that don’t require it. That has contributed to the concentration of foreign policy power in the executive branch.
Meanwhile, presidents, particularly Republican ones, have moved to unilaterally withdraw from ratified treaties, and Congress has not objected, further weakening its oversight power.
