US judge kills attempt to revive ABM Treaty (President BUSH wins another one!)

http://www.spacedaily.com/ ^ | 12/31/2002 | unknown

[BallandPowder]

A last-ditch attempt by a group of lawmakers to resuscitate the defunct US-Russian Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty collapsed when a federal judge angrily threw out their complaint, arguing that members of Congress should not seek help from courts when they lose political battles.

"...The court concludes that the treaty termination issue is a nonjusticiable 'political question' that cannot be resolved by courts," US District Judge John Bates wrote Monday in his opinion. "Accordingly, this action will be dismissed."

The suit was brought last June by 32 members of the House of Representatives led by Ohio Democrat Dennis Kucinich, who asserted that President George W. Bush's decision to withdraw from the ABM Treaty to pursue a vigorous missile defense program was unconstitutional.

The lawmakers argued that since international treaties were usually ratified by the Senate and considered law of the land, the president had no power to repeal the accord without congressional approval.

The treaty, signed by the United States and the Soviet Union in 1972, prohibited nationwide missile defense systems.

The Bush administration gave Moscow the required six-month's notice in December 2001, informing it of its decision to abandon the treaty. The withdrawal formally took effect last June.

Free of ABM constraints, Bush announced two weeks ago his decision to begin deploying as early as 2004 a limited missile shield to protect the United States against attack by terrorists or "rogue" nations like North Korea, Iran and Iraq.

The plan calls for deploying 16 ground-based interceptor missiles at Fort Greeley, Alaska, and four interceptors at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California by the end of 2005.

In addition, up to 20 sea-based weapons capable of intercepting missiles in the boost phase of their flight will be placed aboard ships equipped with Aegis battle management systems, according to the Pentagon.

All these projects would have been illegal had the ABM Treaty remained in effect, according to arms control experts.

Without commenting on the merits of the treaty, the judge harshly chastised the lawmakers for what he saw as an attempt to use the judiciary for achieving goals they had failed to attain through the legislative process.

He said Congress could have denied the Pentagon missile defense funds, passed legislation banning deployment of the interceptors or otherwise forced the president to back down if it wanted to block the anti-missile system and salvage the accord.

"Indeed, in the year since President Bush announced his intention to withdraw from the ABM Treaty, neither the House nor Congress has made any attempt whatsoever to register disapproval as a body, or to insist on a role in the termination of the treaty," stressed Bates.

Reminding the lawmakers that under the constitution the judicial branch has no role in foreign affairs, the judge stated that he did not want "to encourage congressmen to run to court any time they disargeed with presidential action ... or were on the losing end of a piece of legislation."

Neither Kucinich nor other plaintiffs were immediately available for comment.

[BallandPowder]

Powder..Patch..Ball FIRE!

President Bush wins another one! The court agrees with HIM not the Demonrats.......

[Piquaboy]

Out of many judges, at last we have one with brains.

[nhoward14]

Considering that the court system is one of the gods of the RATs, I wonder how they feel after having been struck by lightning by their god.

[bmwcyle]

a federal judge angrily threw out their complaint, arguing that members of Congress should not seek help from courts when they lose political battles

The judge had the lawyer pulled from the floor kicking and crying.

[BallandPowder]

Powder..Patch..Ball FIRE!

Considering that the court system is one of the gods of the RATs, I wonder how they feel after having been struck by lightning by their god

If I had a list of the plantiffs we could email all of em and ask? Wouldn't that be a hoot?!!?

[trebb]

"Indeed, in the year since President Bush announced his intention to withdraw from the ABM Treaty, neither the House nor Congress has made any attempt whatsoever to register disapproval as a body, or to insist on a role in the termination of the treaty," stressed Bates.

That about says it all - they had the system to use, but knew it would be unpopular to have their names on this anti-American sentiment, so they decided to try to pervert the system through the courts. One more reason why President Bush needs to get as many of his choices as possible to the bench.

[RGSpincich]

Somehow this issue will end up in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. They will decide it in favor of Dems using contract law as a basis./s

[michigander]

If I had a list of the plantiffs ...

Over here.

[69ConvertibleFirebird]

Out of many judges, at last we have one with brains.

ANd that is why the DemocRATs will so violently fight reasonable judges who corectly insist on following the law. How else can the Rats win their agenda? They need incompetent (or corrupt) judges.

[BallandPowder]

Powder..patch..Ball FIRE!

You know it is amazing that I did a search of ABM before I posted and got not one return. I also see that our Missouri 1st District congresscritter Lacy Clay is listed. Not much chance of getting anything from him, as he is a legacy politician following his daddy into public service (snicker)....

[RGSpincich]

The crybabies were already complaining about this judge.

[N. Theknow]

Sheila Jackson-Lee was one of the plaintiffs. Probably thought one of the missiles might get loose and screw up the landing zone where Apollo landed on Mars.

[michigander]

I did a search of ABM before I posted and got not one return.

If I recall correctly, the search engine can only look for entries of four or more characters.
This wouldn't have helped in this case as none of the words matching that critieria in the title were the same as the other title.
$#it happens! :-)

[michigander]

where Apollo landed on Mars.

LOL! Wouldn't want to hurt that flag up there dontcha know.

[taxcontrol]

While I'm happy this suit was killed, I do beleive that there is a need for an amendment to the constitution that addresses the issue of treaties.

Specificaly I would like to see the amendment address:

1) All treaties ratified have the weight of federal law and are subject to the Constitution. No treaty my overrule any part of the constitution or the bill of rights. Treaties not ratified have no weight of law in any jurisdiction of the United States.

2) The US may remove itself from a treaty by the same means as ratifying a treaty (President 'unsigns', Senate approves) or by a 2/3s of the states ratifying a "removal resolution"

3) No treaty may proscribe criminal penalties for citizens of the United States. Only civil actions may be taken against the Citizens of the US.

[Right_in_Virginia]

"sounds like excellent SCOTUS candidate..."

Sure does. How often do you hear about a judge doing this:

"..the judge harshly chastised the lawmaker for..an attempt to use the judiciary for achieving goals they had failed to attain through the legislative process."

What a breath of fresh air!

[berserker]

Link to district court opinion Kucinich v. Bush (pdf format).

[berserker]

From the biography on the DC district court website:

Judge John D. Bates was appointed United States District Judge for the District of Columbia in December 2001. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1968 and received a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law in 1976. From 1968 to 1971, he served in the United States Army, including a tour in Vietnam. Judge Bates clerked for Judge Roszel C. Thomsen of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland from 1976 to 1977 and was an associate at Steptoe & Johnson from 1977 to 1980. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia from 1980 to 1997 and was Chief of the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office from 1987 to 1997. Judge Bates was on detail as Deputy Independent Counsel for the Whitewater investigation from 1995 to mid 1997. In 1998, he joined the Washington law firm of Miller & Chevalier, where he was Chair of the Government Contracts/Litigation Department and a member of the Executive Committee. Judge Bates has served on the Advisory Committee for Procedures of the D.C. Circuit and on the Civil Justice Reform Committee for the District Court, and as Treasurer of the D.C. Bar, Chairman of the Publications Committee of the D.C. Bar, and Chairman of the Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs.