Nancy
Pelosi to Introduce Resolution Implying Pre-emptive Surrender to Iran: Speaker
of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) wrote a letter to her Democrat colleagues in
the House on Sunday to reveal a new “War Powers Resolution” that amounts to a
pre-emptive surrender to Iran in ongoing hostilities.
Pelosi’s letter begins with the declaration
that President Donald Trump’s airstrike last week targeting Iranian General
Qasem Suleimani, leader of the terrorist Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps
(IGRC) Quds Force, responsible for the murders of hundreds of Americans and for
recent attacks on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, was “provocative and
disproportionate,” terms suggesting the attack was illegal under international
law and could constitute a war crime.
Harvard
Law School professor emeritus (and Democrat) Alan Dershowitz argued in Monday’s
Wall Street Journal that the strike was not only lawful, but an “easy call”:
“The president has the constitutional authority to take military actions, short
of declaring war, that he and his advisers deem necessary to protect American
citizens. This authority is extremely broad, especially when the actions must,
by their nature, be kept secret from the intended target.”
Nonetheless,
Pelosi’s letter indicates that the House will declare the president’s action
illegal under international law. The letter further claims that Trump’s action
“endangered our servicemembers, diplomats and others by risking a serious
escalation of tensions with Iran” — placing the responsibility for violence not
on Iran, which recently attacked a U.S. Navy drone; a Saudi oil field; and, via
proxies, Americans soldiers and civilians in Iraq; but on the United States,
which had restrained itself until the recent assault by an Iranian-backed
militia on the embassy.
The
letter goes on to describe a new resolution that would “limit the President’s
military actions regarding Iran,” essentially signaling a surrender in the
potential conflict before the Iranian regime itself had managed to respond.
Pelosi adds that the resolution “reasserts Congress’s long-established oversight responsibilities by mandating that if no further Congressional action is taken, the Administration’s military hostilities with regard to Iran cease within 30 days.” Under current law, the War Powers Act of 1973 limits the time that a president can lead a military effort, without formal authorization, to 60 days following a required presidential report to Congress when hostilities begin.
Pelosi adds that the resolution “reasserts Congress’s long-established oversight responsibilities by mandating that if no further Congressional action is taken, the Administration’s military hostilities with regard to Iran cease within 30 days.” Under current law, the War Powers Act of 1973 limits the time that a president can lead a military effort, without formal authorization, to 60 days following a required presidential report to Congress when hostilities begin.
The
new resolution, which Pelosi says mirrors a similar Senate bill by Sen. Tim
Kaine (D-VA), would amount to an effective surrender by signaling that the
president had no congressional support for striking back against Iran, and
imposing a new deadline for any military action that would give Iran greater
freedom of action. Paradoxically, the resolution could force the president to
choose more drastic measures of conducting a war effort before the deadline.
By
declaring the attack “provocative and disproportionate,” the resolution also
invites international prosecution of the president, as well as members of the
administration and the military itself, who carry out his orders. The U.S. does
not recognize the authority of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to
prosecute Americans for war crimes, but the ICC takes a different view, and a
future Democratic administration might well side with the ICC instead.
Pelosi’s
letter (below) indicates that the new “War Powers Resolution” will be introduced and
voted on this week. She has not yet indicated when she will transfer the
articles of impeachment passed by the House on Dec. 18 to the Senate, which she
claims is a necessary prerequisite to the Senate holding a trial on the
president’s removal from office.
JANUARY
5, 2020
Dear
Democratic Colleague,
Last
week, the Trump Administration conducted a provocative and disproportionate
military airstrike targeting high-level Iranian military officials. This
action endangered our servicemembers, diplomats and others by risking a serious
escalation of tensions with Iran.
This
week, the House will introduce and vote on a War Powers Resolution to limit the
President’s military actions regarding Iran. This resolution is similar
to the resolution introduced by Senator Tim Kaine in the Senate. It
reasserts Congress’s long-established oversight responsibilities by mandating
that if no further Congressional action is taken, the Administration’s military
hostilities with regard to Iran cease within 30 days.
The
House Resolution will be led by Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin.
Congresswoman Slotkin is a former CIA and Department of Defense analyst
specializing in Shia militias. She served multiple tours in the region
under both Democratic and Republican Administrations.
I
greatly appreciate the solemnity with which all of our Members are working to
honor our responsibility to protect American lives and values.
Thank
you for your patriotic leadership during this difficult time.
Speaker
Nancy Pelosi
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