That is because he sees his historical legacy as that of a president who ended wars and made them harder to start, instead reinvesting America’s resources in its own people. He opposed the Iraq war in 2003 and promised in 2008 that he would end the unlimited “war on terror,” which had become a potential blank check for US presidents to use force anywhere in the world.
奥巴马双管齐下，既宣告这一权力，也寻求国会授权，这使他跻身于少数积极寻求约束自身权力的领导人的行列。这是因为他的历史使命是成为结束战争、让战争更加难以开启、将美国的资源重新投资于美国人民的总统。2003年时，他反对伊拉克战争；2008年时，他承诺将结束无限度的“反恐战争”，借着这个名头，美国诸位总统在世界各地挑起战争。