Press Releases
September 12, 2008
Webb Calls for Congressional Approval of Any Future U.S.-Iraq Security Agreement
Says Congress Needs to Restore Constitutional Balance When Negotiating Future Long-Term Relationships with Nations
Washington, DC— Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) today introduced legislation calling for the United States to seek an extension of the United Nations Security Council mandate of the Multi-National Force in Iraq and providing that any new security agreement negotiated between the United States and the Government of Iraq would not remain in effect unless approved by Congress within 180 days of entry. These provisions underscore the importance of constitutional oversight in reaching long-term security negotiations with Iraq.
Noting that the legal authority for the United States to be operating in Iraq will expire December 31, 2008, and that Congress will be adjourned at that time, Webb warned that the Bush administration was on the verge of “a constitutional coup d’etat, a further expansion of the powers of the presidency,” by agreeing to a long-term relationship without the consent of Congress.
“We are now faced with the reality that the United Nations mandate will expire at a time when we have hundreds of thousands of Americans on the ground in that country,” said Webb. “Many of my colleagues and I started warning last November that the intention of this administration was to proceed purely with an executive agreement, to drag this out until the Congress was going to go out of session, then to present the executive agreement essentially as a fait accompli.”
Webb stressed the necessity of constitutional balance and oversight when negotiating long-term relationships with nations. Instead, the Bush administration has claimed repeatedly that it has the right to negotiate and enter into an agreement that will set the future course of the United States’ relationship with Iraq without the agreement or even the ratification of the Congress.
“The largest question, really, is what entity of the federal government has the authority to enter the United States into a long-term relationship with another government?” asked Webb on the Senate floor. “I would submit that the conditions under which we will continue to operate in Iraq—militarily, diplomatically, economically, and even culturally—are not the sole business of any administration.
“This administration’s approach seeks to affirm in many minds that the President—any President—no longer needs the approval of Congress to enter into long-term relations with another country. In effect, that is committing us to obligations that involve our national security, our economic well-being, our diplomatic posture around the world, without the direct involvement of the United States Congress.”
Webb concluded: “This is not what the Constitution intended. It’s not in the best interest of the country. And this amendment which I introduce today is designed to prevent this sort of an imbalance from occurring at the same time that it recognizes the realities of the timelines that are now involved with respect to the loss of international authority for our presence in Iraq at the end of this year.”
Senator Webb’s amendment was filed today as #5499 to the fiscal year 2009 National Defense Authorization Act.
To read a copy of Senator Webb’s floor speech, visit: http://webb.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=302942&
Audio and video available upon request.
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