Resolution to stop new Clinton war Print
FOR RELEASE: February 10, 1999

Resolution to stop new Clinton war Paul measure would keep American troops out of Kosovo

WASHINGTON, DC -- US Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced a resolution Tuesday night to stop the Clinton Administration from putting yet more troops in harms' way for the sake of "fuzzy policies that have nothing to do with national security."
The legislation specifically prevents the Clinton Administration from deploying U.S. Armed Forces in Kosovo unless that deployment is specifically authorized by an Act of Congress. Rep. Paul introduced the measure with a dozen original cosponsors, including: Helen Chenoweth of Idaho, Dana Rohrabacher of California, John Hostettler of Indiana, Tom Campbell of California, Matt Salmon of Arizona, Roscoe Bartlett of Maryland, Bob Schaffer of Colorado, John J. Duncan, Jr., of Tennessee, Walter Jones of North Carolina, Jack Metcalf of Washington, Joe Scarborough of Florida and Barbara Cubin of Wyoming.
"This president, like so many of his predecessors in the 20th Century, has shuttled our troops around the world to the detriment of national security, the safety of the men and women in uniform, and at great cost to the taxpayer," said Rep. Paul. "President Clinton proposes to once again place our troops in harms' way for no other reason than to be the policeman of world. In a region that has seen violent ethnic fighting for millennia, it is either the height of arrogance or the most gross ignorance which assumes placing American soldiers between the warring factions can stop the bloodshed. The best we could hope for by such an action would be to limit the number of Americans who are injured or killed in the crossfire."
Rep. Paul said there are three specific concerns with the President's proposed action.
"The President's actions gives Slobodan Milosevic, the so-called 'Butcher of the Balkans' and a former communist party official who now leads the Socialist Party in Serbia, a great victory. Meanwhile, the people of Kosovo who hope for independence would be see their cause stopped in its tracks. Second, US troops would be put in the hazardous position of having to disarm the Kosovo Liberation Army," said Rep. Paul. "Most egregious, though, are news reports indicating that President Clinton would put our troops involved in this action under a foreign military command."
Rep. Paul said Congress must reassert its constitutional authority in matters of committing troops to hostile situations.
"It is the job of Congress, not the president, to determine when America's sons and daughters in uniform should enter combat zones. Our troops should be allowed to do their job, defending our nation and national security, not being used as pawns in international politics or to help a president divert attention from his scandalous problems."