[Peace-discuss] Kucinich on Afghanistan and Constitutional Authority

[Karen Medina]

>>> Kucinich at his best.
>>> http://www.liberty4urbana.com/drupal-6.8/node/386
[transcribed:]
Madame Speaker, This morning I sat before this House and pointed out
that the Nation Magazine did an investigation that showed that US tax
dollars were going to US contractors who then gave the Taliban money
so that the Taliban wouldn't attack shipment of US goods to US troops.
And of course US troops would use those resources to attack the
Taliban. The war in Afghanistan is a racket.

We have a strategy to pay off insurgents, war lords, the Taliban, and
pretending that somehow this practice is going to help make an already
corrupt central government more stable.

I've been in this House now for seven terms and I have seen the slow
and steady erosion of the Constitution of the United States and, in
particular, Congressional authority with respect article one, section
eight of the Constitution which very explicitly puts the power to
create war in the hands of the United States Congress not in the hands
of the executive.

When the founders crafted the Constitution, they were very clear that
they did not want a monarchy. They wanted to, what was called,
restrain the dogs of war by placing the power to commit men and women
into combat in the hands of an elected Congress, in this case in the
hands of the House of Representatives.

Unfortunately, over a few generations we have seen that power of
Congress erode.

Today, according to ABC news, Hamid Karzai, the President of
Afghanistan, in a joint press conference with Secretary of Defense
Robert Gates, said that his country's security forces will need
financial and training assistance from the United States for the next
fifteen to twenty years.

Now since we're already spending at least a hundred to a
hundred-and-fifty billion dollars a year in Afghanistan, we are now
committed, through Mr. Karzai, we are embarked on a strategy that
could lead us to spend two trillion, maybe more.

We've had speakers proceed me today that have talked about the need
for jobs in the United States. It goes without saying that we should
start taking care of things here instead of endeavoring to pour our
resources into a corrupt administration and furthermore engage in a
kind of corruption through trying to pay off war lords and even the
Taliban in order to create shipments to our troops.

As President Obama prepares to escalate military operations in
Afghanistan and Pakistan, we must re-assert our Constitutional
prerogative as it relates to war.

The United States has been involved in military action both in
Afghanistan and Pakistan since the inception of this administration
despite the fact that the President has never submitted a report to
Congress pursuant to section four A one of the War Powers Resolution.

Madame Speaker, when Congress returns in 2010, I intend to bring to
the floor of the House privilege resolutions re-asserting this
Congressional prerogative.

My bills will trigger a timeline for timely withdrawal of US troops
from Afghanistan and Pakistan, invoke the War Powers Resolution of
1973, and secure the Constitutional role of Congress as directly
elected representatives of the people under article one section eight
of the Constitution for Congress to decide whether or not America
enters into a war, continues a war, or otherwise introduces armed
forces or material into combat zones.

Despite the President's assertion that previous Congressional action
gives him the authority to respond to the attacks of September 11,
2001, a careful reading of the authorization of military force makes
clear that this authorization did not supersede any requirement of the
War Powers Resolution and therefore did not undermine Congress'
ability to revisit the Constitutional question of War Powers at a
later date.

We will have an opportunity in this House in January to vote on this
issue of Afghanistan and Pakistan and I urge my colleagues to join the
resolution which I will begin to circulate the notice of starting
tomorrow. Thank you.

> Kucinich Circulating Privileged Resolutions to End Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan
> http://kucinich.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=159823
>
> Require the President to Withdraw from Afghanistan
> http://kucinich.house.gov/UploadedFiles/privileged_resolution_DC.pdf
>
> Directing the President to Remove US forces from Afghanistan:
> http://kucinich.house.gov/UploadedFiles/Privileged_Resolution_Afghanistan.pdf
>
> Directing the President to Remove US forces from Pakistan:
> http://kucinich.house.gov/UploadedFiles/Privileged_Resolution_Pakistan.pdf