Feingold investigating Congress's power to end war

Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) has for some time been a strong voice opposing the war in Iraq -- he voted against the original resolution authorizing the use of force in 2002 -- and has been even louder in speaking out against the Bush-McCain Doctrine of truly making Iraq a war without end. Starting today, he'll take it a step further when he chairs a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing entitled “Exercising Congress’s Constitutional Power to End a War.”

Feingold, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on the Constitution, called on Congress as soon as the new session began to use its power of the purse to redeploy troops safely from Iraq so that we can refocus on the global terrorist networks that truly threaten our national security.

“Congress holds the power of the purse and if the President continues to advance his failed Iraq policy, we have the responsibility to use that power to safely redeploy our troops from Iraq,” Feingold said. “This hearing will help inform my colleagues and the public about Congress’s power to end a war and how that power has been used in the past."

The Judiciary Committee hearing is intended to help clarify exactly what Congressional options exist to help Senate Democrats halt George W. Bush's ill-advised escalation of the Iraq war and will include testimony from Prof. Walter Dellinger, Duke University School of Law -- and former Solicitor General of the United States -- Prof. David Barron, Harvard Law School and Prof. Robert Turner of the University of Virginia Law School.