When we think about the US Constitution, we often thinking about a venerable document on which are committed the political compromises that shaped the guiding principles of the United States. We don't necessarily think about how it bears on the military profession. But the Constitution has a lot to say specifically to the military and to the deployment of military force. 

Most often, what it offers as guidance for the military are in the form of constraints. We are already familiar with the function of constraints. The ways in which the Constitution constrains the military is through the exercise of power by four political bodies: the president, the congress, the judiciary, and the Supreme Law of the Land. Many of the challenging moral decisions you will face as an officer involve settled matters already adjudicated in the Constitution. 

READ THIS

"Constitutional Ethics" Col. Paul Roush

"Captain Lawrence Rockwood in Haiti" Stephen Wrage

Additional Resources:

"Tiananmen Square: Why Did He Stop?"

WATCH THIS (Optional)

Col. Linell Letendre on "Constitutional Ethics" US Naval War College

Before coming to class, think on these things:

1. The Constitution, perhaps surprisingly, offers something like a moral deliberation roadmap of its own. How do the various forces of constraint--the presidency, congressional, judiciary, and the Supreme Law of the Land guide behavior? How do they overlap?
2. How does the Constitution interact with or correspond to international law? Is one supreme over the other?
3. The Constitutional Paradigm brings the Constitutional constraints to bear on the profession of arms. How does it do this? 
   1. As a source of moral deliberation, the principles of the Constitutional Paradigm are to be applied in sequence. What are they? How do they function?
4. Is the Moral Deliberation Roadmap presented in this class compatible with the moral deliberative characteristics of the Constitution? Do they work well together? Could they ever conflict?  
5. In the video, Co. Letendre reflects on Constitutional ethics for senior officers at the US War College. Is the relationship of senior officers to the Constitution different than for junior officers? How? Why?