In recent decades, Congress’s approach to national security policymaking has been like Bartleby’s: It would prefer not to. This long-term relinquishing of authority has left the executive branch with increasing power to take extraordinary action with almost no oversight. We at Democracy, with the support of Open Society Foundations, decided to look at the effects of that monopolization of authority, in policy areas from arms sales to national emergency declarations. This array of experts will convince you of how serious this problem is, even when the President shares your politics.