[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4169 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4169

  To provide that the International Criminal Court is not valid with 
         respect to the United States, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 11, 2002

Mr. Paul (for himself, Mr. Barr of Georgia, Mr. Hostettler, Mr. Petri, 
Mr. Goode, Mr. Wamp, Mr. Bartlett of Maryland, Mr. Norwood, Mr. Kerns, 
   Mr. Flake, Mr. Crane, Mr. Kingston, Mr. Manzullo, Mr. Duncan, Mr. 
Schaffer, Mr. Weldon of Florida, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Rohrabacher, and Mr. 
  Tancredo) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                  Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide that the International Criminal Court is not valid with 
         respect to the United States, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``American Servicemember and Citizen 
Protection Act of 2002''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) In December 1997, the General Assembly of the United 
        Nations called for the convening of a diplomatic conference in 
        Rome, Italy, from June 15 through July 17, 1998, to adopt a 
        Convention on the Establishment of an International Criminal 
        Court.
            (2) Pursuant to this call, the United Nations Diplomatic 
        Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Establishment of an 
        International Criminal Court convened in Rome, Italy, and on 
        July 17, 1998, proposed the Statute of the International 
        Criminal Court for ``ratification, acceptance, or approval'' by 
        the member states of the United Nations.
            (3) According to article 127 of the Statute of the 
        International Criminal Court, the Statute of the International 
        Criminal Court shall take effect upon the ``ratification, 
        acceptance, or approval'' of 60 member states.
            (4) As of April 1, 2002, 57 member states have ratified, 
        accepted, or approved the Statute of the International Criminal 
        Court.
            (5) According to articles 12 and 25 of the Statute of the 
        International Criminal Court, the jurisdiction of the 
        International Criminal Court shall extend to individual United 
        States citizens even if the United States does not ``ratify, 
        accept, or approve'' the Statute of the International Criminal 
        Court.
            (6) As of April 1, 2002, the United States Senate has not 
        ratified the Statute of the International Criminal Court, and 
        although a designee of former President William J. Clinton has 
        signed that statute on behalf of the United States, President 
        George W. Bush has indicated that he will not submit the 
        Statute of the International Criminal Court to the United 
        States Senate, as provided for in article II, section 2 of the 
        Constitution of the United States.
            (7) According to article VI of the Constitution of the 
        United States, the Statute of the International Criminal Court, 
        bearing only the signature of a person authorized by the 
        President of the United States, cannot be the supreme law of 
        the land because the statute, since it has not been ratified by 
        the United States Senate pursuant to article II, section 2 of 
        the Constitution, has not been ``made under the authority of 
        the United States''.
            (8) According to the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of 
        Treaties, no nation may be bound by a treaty to which that 
        nation has not consented; therefore the United States, which 
        has not consented to the Statute of the International Criminal 
        Court in the manner prescribed by the Constitution of the 
        United States, cannot be bound by the Statute of the 
        International Criminal Court even if 60 countries ratify, 
        accept, or approve it.
            (9) The Statute of the International Criminal Court is an 
        ultra vires act, wholly unauthorized by the Charter of the 
        United Nations, since it was enacted by a Conference of 
        Diplomats convened by the United Nations General Assembly in 
        contravention of the powers of the United Nations Security 
        Council which, under the Charter of the United Nations, alone 
        has primary responsibility for the maintenance of international 
        peace and security.
            (10) The Statute of the International Criminal Court also 
        contravenes the principle of government only by the consent of 
        the governed that is enshrined in the American national 
        charter, the Declaration of Independence, because the 
        International Criminal Court claims jurisdiction over citizens 
        of the United States without their consent or without the 
        consent of the United States Government.
            (11) The Statute of the International Criminal Court also 
        contravenes the principles of separation of powers, federalism, 
        and trial by jury that are guaranteed by the Constitution of 
        the United States, because the International Criminal Court has 
        been endowed with legislative, executive, and judicial powers 
        and with criminal jurisdiction without regard to the 
        jurisdiction of the United States and the several States.
            (12) The International Criminal Court, by design and 
        effect, is an illegitimate court, established contrary to the 
        provisions of the Charter of the United Nations, the American 
        Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United 
        States, and as such, puts United States citizens in jeopardy of 
        unlawful and unconstitutional criminal prosecution, with 
        members of the United States Armed Forces placed especially at 
        risk of politically motivated arrests, prosecutions, fines, and 
        imprisonments for acts engaged in for the protection of the 
        sovereignty and independence of the United States.
            (13) United States citizens generally, and members of the 
        United States Armed Forces in particular, deserve the full 
        protection of the Constitution of the United States--the very 
        body of law the members of the Armed Forces risk life and limb 
        to protect.

SEC. 3. RESCISSION OF SIGNATURE.

    The President of the United States should formally rescind the 
signature approving the Statute of the International Criminal Court 
made on behalf of the United States and should take such steps as are 
necessary to prevent the establishment of the International Criminal 
Court.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF FUNDS.

    No funds appropriated or otherwise made available by the United 
States Government for any purpose may be used in any manner for the 
establishment or operation of the International Criminal Court.

SEC. 5. PROTECTION OF MEMBERS OF THE UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES AND 
              UNITED STATES CITIZENS AND NATIONALS.

    (a) Actions Against Members of the Armed Forces.--Any action taken 
by or on behalf of the International Criminal Court against any member 
of the United States Armed Forces shall be considered to be an act of 
aggression against the United States.
    (b) Actions Against United States Citizens or Nationals.--Any 
action taken by or on behalf of the International Criminal Court 
against any individual who is a citizen or national of the United 
States shall be considered to be an offense against the law of nations.

SEC. 6. PENALTIES.

    Any person who knowingly violates section 4 shall be fined not more 
than $50,000, or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.
                                 <all>