The U.S. Constitution is gone. Kaput. For years it stood as the bedrock of a republic that kept its government chained. For years the constitution limited government intervention, letting the free market operate instead of domestic, well-connected crony business interests.

Likewise, elected leaders consulted the constitution when government intervention abroad was considered. There once was a time in America when Congress debated the merits and risks of a government's most pressing issue: war.

In these days of past, Congress – fulfilling their constitutional duties set forth in Article I, Section 8 – would be the ones to declare war.

The president could not act unilaterally to enter into hostilities.

That time is no more. Now, as it has been for decades, the people's power through their representatives has essentially been eliminated. The U.S. is facing what Washington, Jefferson, and the other founders warned so strongly against: the return of the king to the former colonies.

All that's needed is for the president – just a single person — to call for war, impacting the lives of millions, both at home and abroad.

Regarding the current operation in Iraq against ISIS, this Times article highlights a 28-year old Army intelligence officer, Captain Nathan Michael Smith, and his struggle with the constitutionality of the conflict. With the president still operating on the post-9/11 authorizations for war, Smith's argument is that congress should reauthorize military operations.

And since the plaintiff has taken an oath to support and defend the constitution, he has brought forth a federal lawsuit to independently examine these arguments.

Ever the supporter of a more powerful executive branch when a Democrat has the reins, the Times reporter Bruce Ackerman asks, "Does the captain's participation in this undeclared war involve him in a mission to destroy, not 'defend,' the Constitution?"

Hardly. By the letter of the law, the captain is correct. There's the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which forces the president to obtain congressional approval of hostilities within 60 days of the conflict. With a White House-declared interruption in fighting in Iraq, the time is due for a renewal from congress.