Instead, suffering from a lack of what we want with no avenue to get what we want, we go to war in order to forcibly take that which would otherwise reach us through voluntary, mutually wealth-enhancing exchange.
For example, they can forcibly reduce consumption in order to spur investment (or pay down debt), they can marshal resources for infrastructure projects with greater ease and less concern for legal niceties, and they can more rapidly focus on priority projects.
To appreciate the danger of bypassing the checks and balances of our constitution, consider a sampling of the types of actions performed under executive order: 110, 000 Japanese forcibly interned during WWII (FDR), steel mills seized (Truman, later challenged and found unconstitutional in the Supreme Court), affirmative action programs instituted (beginning with Kennedy and expanded by later presidents), price controls imposed (Nixon), and faith-based initiatives established (GW Bush).