"To initiate a war of aggression is, therefore, not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime, differing from other war crimes only in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole."
- Judgment of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, relating
to "Count
Two, the Crime of Aggression," as brought against
Herman Goering, Joachim von
Ribbentrop, and 14 other defendants.
In Mr. Bush's "State 0f The Union" address, he claimed that "US forces will
be drawn down as Iraqi forces stand up." [1] However, this claim is flatly
contradicted by the Pentagon's ongoing multibillion-dollar expenditures for the
construction of 106 permanent bases - including six hi-tech "super-bases" -
inside Iraq. [2]
Is there a reason why the USA's mainstream media won't report on those 106
bases, and why Congress won't debate the Pentagon's base-construction projects?
The simplest answer is that the government-media complex has declared this
subject taboo because it would reveal the USA's intention to militarily occupy
Iraq for decades. [3]
Furthermore, Mr. Bush's quagmire in Iraq already has the USA hemorrhaging red
ink. According to a recent study by the American Economic Association, the
Bush administration's pre-war estimate of a $60 billion price-tag for the Iraq
War was wildly unrealistic. The study concluded that the final bill for the
Iraq War will actually be somewhere between ONE AND TWO TRILLION DOLLARS,
depending on how much longer our troops stay. [4] And that staggering figure doesn't
take into account its human costs in bloodshed and suffering. [5]
Realistically, Mr. Bush's "draw-down" rhetoric is merely a propaganda ploy in
anticipation of the 2006 mid-term election, and the withdrawal won't be
implemented. In all likelihood, those hi-tech "super-bases" will serve another
purpose, which is to launch and monitor his next illegal war of aggression against
Iraq's oil-rich neighbor, IRAN. [6] Of course, the Bush administration will
reassure us, during its pre-war propaganda campaign, that their petro-state
invasion is absolutely necessary, and isn't merely another "blood-for-oil"
scenario through which their wealthy war-profiteering cronies will further enrich
themselves at our expense (and some naive Americans will actually believe them).
So where is this nation's foreign policy headed? In the short run, Mr. Bush
is already attempting to expand his "wartime commander-in-chief powers" to
despotic dimensions, so he can - among other things - autonomously order the
commencement of a "might-makes-right" aggressive war against Iran, thus giving
Republicans yet another "national security" cudgel to swing during the upcoming
mid-term election. [7]
Additionally, it's foreseeable that Mr. Bush's dictatorial assumption of
extra-constitutional powers will elicit a strong negative reaction domestically,
and that he'll use these protests as his excuse to declare martial law at home.
In the long run, it's foreseeable that his cynical militarization of US
foreign policy will bankrupt this nation - morally, legally, politically and
economically. [8]
BEFORE these things happen, we should be asking ourselves: "Does might make
right?" According to the principles of Just War Theory and international law,
the answer is a resounding "NO!" [9] BEFORE these things happen, we should have
the moral courage to pro-actively pursue every legitimate preventive measure
that is available to us in a democracy. BEFORE these things happen, we should
try the constitutionally-prescribed remedy of impeachment and - if it becomes
necessary - collective acts of nonviolent civil disobedience on a massive
scale everywhere. [10]
Finally, every citizen should know that the plain language of the US
Constitution empowers Congress to impeach any president who commits a war
crime in
violation of the USA's treaty obligations under international law. Here's how:
(a) in Article VI, Paragraph 2, of the US Constitution, the "Supremacy Clause"
declares that Senate-ratified treaties are "the supreme law of the land"; and
(b) Article I, Section 8, Clause 10 of the US Constitution, Congress is
empowered to "punish...offenses against the law of nations." In short, Congress may
punish the president for committing war crimes in violation of Senate-ratified
treaties and conventions. Therefore, Congress may impeach, convict, and remove
Mr. Bush from office for committing the supreme crime when he ordered the
commencement of an aggressive war against Iraq. [11]
_______________________________________________________________
ENDNOTES
[1] One of Mr. Bush's first claims during his State Of The Union speech on
1-31-06.
[2] Tom Englehart's 2-14-06 TD essay, "A Permanent Basis For War: Can You Say
'Permanent Bases'? The American Press Can't" [Gives details about the
Pentagon's construction of 106 permanent bases, and 6 hi-tech "super bases," inside
Iraq.]: http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?emx=x&pid=59774
[3] Ibid.
[4] Linda Bilmes & Joseph Stiglitz's 1-17-06 CD/LAT essay, "War's Stunning
Price Tag" [An objective economic study has concluded that Bush's Iraq War will
cost the USA between $1 and $2 TRILLION.]:
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0117-20.htm
[5] Eric Leaver's 2-9-06 CD/Sun-Sentinel essay, "Why 2,245 Is Just The Tip Of
The Iceberg" [Cites statistics on human suffering and monetary expenditures
to explain why the Iraq War's costs are much higher than the government-media
complex is reporting.]: http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0209-35.htm
[6] Bob Burnett's 2-13-06 CD essay, "Iran - Deja Vu All Over Again" [Reports
there are objective indicators that Mr. Bush is planning to commence an
aerial-and-commando invasion of Iran this spring, then explains why this plan isn't
a good idea.]: http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0213-29.htm
[7] A. Al Gore's 1-16-06 OrbStandard.com speech transcript, "We, The People,
Must Save Our Constitution" (with 26 endnotes on impeachment by Evan Augustine
Peterson III, J.D.) [Our former VP's speech is NOT merely political; liberals
and conservatives agree that it's a brilliant analysis of the USA's very real
Constitutional crisis; he recommends the appointment of a special prosecutor,
which is a precursor to impeachment.]:
http://www.orbstandard.com/News/Front/Gore_We_Must_Save_Our_Constitution.html
B. Brian Foley's 1-30-06 Jurist essay, "The Real Danger Of Presidential
Spying" [FCLS Law Professor uses excellent hypotheticals to explain why
presidential spying on American citizens is dangerous: it chills the independent
exercise of free speech among potential political rivals, journalists and
activists who would otherwise balance, oppose, or constrain the imperial expansions
of executive power that lead to dictatorship.]:
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/forumy/2006/01/real-danger-of-presidential-spying.php
[8] Two excellent essays provide critiques of the Bushites' militarization of
America:
A. Peter Phillips' 2-9-06 CD essay, "Is US Military Dominance Of The
World A Good Idea?" [Excellent statistics-based argument against the
militarization of US foreign policy.]: http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0209-32.htm
B. Henry Giroux's 1-3-06 DV essay, "The New Authoritarianism In The
United States" [Especially see his fourth anti-democratic dogma: the ongoing
militarization of every aspect of public life, in which he cites numerous authors
with the same viewpoint.]: http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Jan06/Giroux03.htm
[9] A. NCCB's 11-17-93 essay, "The Church's Teaching On War And Peace: The
Harvest Of Justice Is Sown In Peace" [Pope John Paul II officially notified
Messrs. Bush and Blair that the Roman Catholic Church opposed the Anglo-American
invasion of Iraq because it violated the principles of Just War Theory. This
essay emphasizes that Christianity's role should be that of a peacemaker. Especi
ally see Section 1 B, "Two Traditions: Nonviolence And Just War". Contrast
this with the American Religious Right's false "holy warrior Jesus."]:
http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/harvestexr.htm
B. Alexander Moseley's essay, defining "Just War Theory," in the
International Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
http://www.iep.utm.edu/j/justwar.htm
[10] Jamin Raskin's 2-14-06 TP essay, "Impeach: Yes, But..." [American
University Law Professor explains the grounds for impeaching Mr. Bush, then why it's
imperative that the American people take personal responsibility for
launching the impeachment process - in the moral, electoral, and Congressional sense -
against Mr. Bush and his minions.]:
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/02/14/impeach_yes_but.php
[11]. A. The Judgment of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg
defined the decision by 16 German national leaders to commence an aggressive war as
follows: "The charges in the Indictment that the defendants planned and waged
aggressive wars are charges of the utmost gravity. War is essentially an evil
thing. Its consequences are not confined to the belligerent states alone, but
affect the whole world. To initiate a war of aggression is, therefore, not
only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime, differing
from other war crimes only in that it contains within itself the accumulated
evil of the whole." For the Nuremberg Judgment's full text, see:
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/imt/proc/judnazi.htm#common
In other words, "aggressive war" is state-sponsored terrorism on a
massive scale. Hence, national leaders who commit the supreme international crime
by giving the orders to commence an aggressive war will be held legally
responsible for every war crime that their belligerents subsequently commit - and
that most definitely includes Messrs. Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, et al.
B. Nicholas Davies' 12-31-04 OnlineJournal.com essay, "The Crime Of War:
From Nüremberg To Fallujah" [Excellent history of the crime of aggressive
war, and application to the Anglo-American invasion, conquest, and occupation of
Iraq.]:
http://www.onlinejournal.com/Special_Reports/123104Davies/123104davies.html
C. TJSL Law Professor Marjorie Cohn's 11-9-04 TO essay, "Aggressive War:
Supreme International Crime": http://www.truthout.org/docs_04/110904A.shtml
Recommended Reading:
1. Rev. Bill McGinnis' 2-16-06 OEN essay, "Any Person, Civilian Or Military,
Who Violates A Federal Criminal Law Is A Criminal Subject To Prosecution (Even
If The President Himself Gave Orders To Commit The Crime)":
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_rev__bil_060215_any_person_2c_military.htm
2. Katherine Brengle's 2-16-06 OEN essay, "War Crimes: It's Time For The
United Nations To Step In And Charge The United States With War Crimes":
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_katherin_060216_war_crimes.htm
3. Matthew Cardinale's 2-16-06 OEN/Atlanta Progressive News essay, "25 US
Reps Want Bush Impeachment Inquiry":
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_matthew__060215_25_us_reps_want_bush.htm
4. Dr. Carol Wolman's 2-16-06 OEN essay, "Concrete Steps Toward Impeachment":
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_carol_wo_060216_a_concrete_step_towa.htm
_______________________________________________________________
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Evan Augustine Peterson III, J.D., is the Executive Director of the American
Center for International Law ("ACIL"). His essays on international law, human
rights, civil liberties, politics, theology and ethics have been published by
more than 30 websites worldwide. Readers are encouraged to forward this essay
to your friends, relatives and colleagues.
© 2006 EAP IIII
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