Obama, Libya and the authorization conflict
The president does not need authorization from Congress before launching a military offensive — so said Vice President Dick Cheney and other advisers to President George W. Bush in the summer of 2002 as that administration prepared to use force to topple Saddam Hussein. When Bush’s spokesman Ari Fleischer said the president would consult with members of Congress before any attack on Iraq, a reporter asked “does ‘consult’ mean ask permission? ” Fleischer replied with a non-answer, saying, “the president will consult with Congress because Congress has an important role to play.” At the urging of Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and others, Bush did, in the end, seek a vote by Congress to authorize his attack on Iraq and he got that authorization in October 2002. In the case of Libya, President Barack Obama has consulted with congressional leaders, but sought no authorization for his military operation against Col.* Moammar Gadhafi's regime. No permission needed? At a press conference in Chile on Monday Obama gave no indication that he thought any congressional authorization was needed. In his two major statements on Libya the president made only one passing reference to Congress, saying “I've acted after consulting with my national security team, and Republican and Democratic leaders of Congress.” Obama’s stance is striking: not only hasn’t he addressed the question of congressional authorization, but acting without it appears to be at oddswith what he stood for when he ran for president. “The President does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation, ” Obama told the HYPERLINK " http: //www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/CandidateQA/ObamaQA/" Boston Globe ** in 2007. Obama has not argued that Gadhafi is “an actual or imminent threat” to the United States, only to the Libyans who oppose him. ***** *Col. – colonel ** the HYPERLINK " http: //www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/specials/CandidateQA/ObamaQA/" Boston Globe – the newspaper in Boston I. Find the equivalents in the text: Санкция Конгресса; предпринять военную наступательную операцию; свергнуть; официальный представитель администрации Буша; избежать прямого ответа; добиваться резолюции; позиция Обамы поразительна; войти в противоречие; разрешить в одностороннем порядке; непосредственная угроза.
Obama cites 'international legitimacy'
He pledged that “we will not deploy any U.S. troops on the ground” and emphasized that the American role would be growing smaller “in a matter of days and not in matter of weeks” as other nations take part in enforcing a no-fly zone over Libya. He portrayed the relatively limited U.S. role as a cost-saving measure, saying that “our military is already very stretched” and argued that air strikes by France and other nations “relieves the burden on U.S. taxpayers.” In a letter to congressional leaders Monday, Obama claimed that his actions in Libya " are in the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States, pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations and as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive." He said he was giving Congress notice under the provisions of the 1973 War Powers Act. But his letter didn't note that the 1973 law allows the president to use military force only when there is an attack on the United States or when Congress has voted to declare war or to authorize military operations. Obama’s military offensive without congressional authorization raises familiar questions about when a president can and cannot order bombs to be dropped, missiles to be launched and troops to be landed on foreign soil. II. Find the equivalents in the text: Международный правопорядок; в считанные дни; зона, запрещенная для полетов; воздушный налет; облегчать бремя; в соответствии с конституционными полномочиями; Главнокомандующий; глава исполнительной власти; уведомить; в соответствии с положениями; закон о полномочиях в условии военного времени. III. Answer the questions: 1) What do you know about Saddam Hussein? 2) What do you know about Col.* Moammar Gadhafi? 3) Who is Commander in Chief and Chief Executive in the USA? And in Russia? 4) What is the point of conflict between President Obama and Congress? 5) What do you think of the war in Libya and the ways to stop in? Family 1.
Looking at the Generation Gap Identifying Generational Differences and Their Causes Many grandparents grew up in an era of angry confrontations between the generations. As they ease into the role of family patriarchs and matriarchs, they may wonder: What happened to the generation gap? Is it gone? Or it is still present but mostly underground?
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