IVAW wants to prosecute Bush Administration

Taking up the clarion call from Geezers for Sitting on Our Hands (VFP), the Iraq Veterans Against the War, announced that they voted last month to pursue the Bush Administration for their prosecution of the Iraq War. So let’s look at their statement for their justification (Here’s the link, but you’ll have to paste it into your browser because IVAW doesn’t allow traffic from TAH http://www.ivaw.org/node/6087).

They claim that Bush violated the Constitution by not getting the authorization from Congress.

Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution vests the power to authorize use of military force in the Legislative Branch, not the Executive.

That’s funny because the October 16, 2002 Joint Resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq of the 107th Congress (it’s right there in the name) in section 3, paragraph (a) states;

Authorization.–The President is authorized to use the Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to– (1) defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq; and (2) enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.

If you’ll remember, Democrats controlled the Senate in October 2002 and it still passed.

By the way, have you guys ever heard of the War Powers Act of 1973? It says;

In the absence of a declaration of war, in any case in which United States Armed Forces are introduced– […]

The President shall provide such other information as the Congress may request in the fulfillment of its constitutional responsibilities with respect to committing the Nation to war and to the use of United States Armed Forces abroad.

So you see, there’s no requirement to get a declaration of war from Congress to engage troops in combat.

IVAW also alleges that there was no “imminent threat” from Iraq. Do you mean aside from shooting at our aircraft patrolling the skies over the No-Fly Zone while our aircraft enforced the UN-mandate? Like the three times in ten years that the Iraq Army drove their armored divisions to the Kuwait border and rattled sabers – causing us to deploy troops back to Kuwait?

Or this;

And why limit the prosecution to just the Bush administration? The Clinton Administration called Hussein an imminent threat on December 18, 1998;

Earlier today, I ordered America’s armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. … Their mission is to attack Iraq’s nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors. … Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.

The IVAW also writes;

IVAW further alleges that the Bush administration’s alterations to Iraqi laws were made for the intended benefit of U.S. multinational corporations and are illegal under international law.

What has the Obama Administration done to correct the supposed changing of Iraqi laws?

IVAW is just clinging to the last shred of their relevance while trying to avoid pissing off the Democrats.

It is time for America to hold the officials responsible for this war to account for their decisions.

Why just the Republican officials?

Category: Antiwar crowd, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Phony soldiers