(AP) A group of U.S. soldiers, parents of soldiers and six U.S. House members filed a lawsuit in federal court Thursday seeking to stop the president from launching a war against Iraq without a declaration of war from Congress.
The lawsuit seeks an immediate injunction against Bush and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to prevent them from launching an invasion of Iraq. Reps. John Conyers, D-Mich., and the other plaintiffs in the lawsuit say a resolution passed by Congress in October did not specifically declare war and unlawfully ceded the decision to Mr. Bush. Conyers cited an excerpt from Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution that states, "Congress shall have power ... to declare war." ------------------------------------------------------ Right on! But I'd go further, even paying for it myself if I could. I'd file a suit against Bush, et al., for violating the presidential oath of office, specifically the promise to "preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States." Can anyone say "Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003"? (It would give the Attorney General the unchecked power to deport any foreigner, including lawful permanent resident aliens. It would give the government the power to keep certain arrests secret until an indictment is found -- never in our history have we permitted secret arrests. It would give the government power to bypass courts and grand juries in order to conduct surveillance without a judge's permission.) Further, no matter where one stands on the coming war, *no* intelligence report from any agency has ever denied that an invasion of Iraq will make the US *more* vulnerable to terrorist attack from Al Qaeda. Ensure domestic tranquility, my ass!
