US House Approves Resolution Authorizing Use of Force against Iraq

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, October 11, 2002

US House Approves Resolution Authorizing Use of Force against Iraq

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The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to approve the No. 114 resolution which grants President George W. Bush the power to use force in dealing with Iraq although many lawmakers expressed opposition to the motion during hectic debates over the past few days.

The vote announced by House speaker Dennis Hastert was 296 for and 133 against, but a Democrat senator who voted "nay" in the first place decided shortly afterwards to switch to "yea" in favorof the resolution.

The No. 114 resolution adopted was a compromised version reached between the White House and leaders of the House of Representatives on Oct. 2. The original version sent to the Congress by the White House on September 26 was widely criticized as asking for a blank check which will grant Bush broad powers to use force against any nation in the Gulf region.

President Bush has expressed satisfaction with the revised version, saying that it does not bind his hands to deal with Iraq.

The administration has argued that it needs such a resolution to show US unity to the world and press the UN Security Council to adopt a new and tough resolution, which hopefully will automate the use of force in the event of Iraqi non-compliance.

"The president hopes this (the resolution) will send a strong message to the world, and to Iraq, that If Iraq does not obey the UN resolutions, that the United States is prepared to enforce the peace," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters on Thursday.

An identical resolution introduced in the Senate is still under debate. But Senate Minority leader Trent Lott said earlier Thursday at a press conference in Washington that there is a possibility that the Senate, which is scheduled for a final vote on Friday, may also pass the resolution later Thursday.

The debates on the resolution began in both chambers of the US Congress on Tuesday. Many lawmakers, especially Democrats, have voiced their opposition to the resolution, arguing that the unilateral use of force will have negative impact on the US-led war on terrorism and US economy, and will set a bad precedent of preemptive strike which may be emulated by other countries in the future.

Dennis Kucinich, Democratic representative from Ohio, on Thursday criticized the Bush administration of abusing the power of the United States by developing the doctrine of preemptive strike.

Representative Pete Stark, Democrat of California, on Wednesday rose to opposition to the resolution, saying that he was deeply troubled that lives may be lost without a meaningful attempt to bring Iraq into compliance with UN resolutions through careful and cautious diplomacy.

"The bottom line is I don't trust the president and his advisers," he said. "Make no mistake, we are voting on a resolution that grants total authority to a president who wants to invade a sovereign nation without any specific act of provocation."

"This would authorize the United States to act as the aggressor for the first time in our history and it sets a precedent for our nation or any nation to exercise brute force anywhere in the world without regard to international law or international consensus," he noted.

Representative Silvestre Reyes, Democrat of Wisconsin, also came out strongly against the resolution, saying that President Bush has not made a case as to why US should use force to attack Iraq.

As a member of the House Intelligence Committee, Reyes said on the floor of the House on Wednesday that he had found little evidence to prove the connection between Iraq and the September 11attacks, and the connection between Iraq and al Qaida network.

"Clear message"

Shortly after the US House of Representatives approved the resolution to authorize the use of force against Iraq, President George W. Bush said Thursday that "the days of Iraq acting as an outlaw state are coming to an end."

Bush said in a statement that "the House of Representatives hasspoken clearly to the world and to the United Nations Security Council: The gathering threat of Iraq must be confronted fully andfinally."

Earlier, the US House voted overwhelmingly to approve the resolution which grants Bush the power to use force against Iraq, a country that was labeled by Bush as part of an "axis of evil".

"Today's vote also sends a clear message to the Iraqi regime: You must disarm and comply with all existing UN resolutions or it will be forced to comply," Bush said.

"There are no other options for the Iraqi regime," he said, adding that "there can be no negotiations. The days of Iraq actingas an outlaw state are coming to an end."

An identical resolution was still under debate in the Senate, which may also pass the resolution later Thursday.

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