Conyers and Nine Members of Congress File Suit Over Illegal Libya Military Engagement

Conyers and Nine Members of Congress File Suit Over Illegal Libya Military Engagement

Washington, D.C. — Today Representative John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) and nine other members of Congress filed a suit in federal court against President Barack Obama, challenging U.S. military commitment in Libya without the required constitutional legal authority.  

“It’s the law,” said Conyers.  “The President cannot unilaterally take the country to war.   The American people have grown weary of open-ended military conflicts that place our troops in harm’s way and add billions to our national debt.  This is one of the reasons why the President initially limited the scope of our military presence in Libya to exclude the use of American ground troops.”

The lawsuit calls for injunctive and declaratory relief to protect the plaintiffs and the country from the following:

(1) policy that a president may unilaterally go to war in Libya and other countries without a declaration of war from Congress, as required by Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the United States Constitution 

(2) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in violation of the express conditions of the North Atlantic Treaty ratified by Congress

(3) the policy that a president may commit the United States to a war under the authority of the United Nations without authorization from Congress

(4) from the use of previously appropriated funds by Congress for an unconstitutional and unauthorized war in Libya or other countries

(5) from the violation of the War Powers Resolution as a result of the Obama Administration’s established policy that the President does not require congressional authorization for the use of military force in wars like the one in Libya.

The questions raised in the lawsuit will be critical to challenge the executive branch’s circumvention of Congress and its use of international organizations such as the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to authorize the use of military force abroad, in violation of the Constitution.

The lawsuit was signed by Representatives Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), Walter Jones (R-NC), Howard Coble (R-NC), John Duncan (R-TN), Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD), John Conyers (D-MI) Ron Paul (R-TX), Michael Capuano (D-MA), Tim Johnson (R-IL) and Dan Burton (R-IN).

#06-15-2011#