[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 51 (Wednesday, April 14, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E654-E655]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE TERRORIST ELIMINATION ACT OF 1999

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. BOB BARR

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 14, 1999

  Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the 
Terrorist Elimination Act of 1999 that would end a decades old ban on 
U.S. government involvement in killing foreign military and terrorist 
leaders.
  The ban has been in place since the late 1970s by Executive Orders, 
and the legislation I am introducing, would nullify the provisions of 
several Executive Orders that created the ban.
  In several recent cases, the United States has committed extensive 
force to operations designed to remove a handful of elite political 
rulers, or military or terrorist leaders. This was our basic military 
goal in strikes directed at Libya, Iraq, and other sites in the Middle 
East and North Africa in recent years. It also appears to be the 
motivation behind American involvement against Slodoban Milosevic's 
forces in the former Yugoslavia.
  It is dishonest, costly and dangerous to use massive military force 
to remove those leaders who threaten American lives, commit terrorist 
acts or war crimes, or who destabilize regions of the world. Our 
federal government should never put the lives of our troops at risk 
when there is an alternative method of accomplishing the same goals.
  Terrorists leaders or war criminals should rarely be directly 
targeted, and any such steps should only be considered after very 
careful and comprehensive consideration involving our military, 
intelligence, and policy leaders. However, when a foreign dictator or 
terrorist leader threatens the lives of Americans, I believe it is 
entirely appropriate for us to remove that threat by any means 
necessary, without arbitrarily limiting our options.
  Mr. Speaker I wrote to President Bill Clinton with regard to this 
issue on August 24, 1998. Below is a copy of the letter I sent to the 
President:

                                                  August 24, 1998.
     In re assassination ban.

     Hon. William J. Clinton,
     President of the United States, The White House, Washington, 
         DC.

       Dear Mr. President: Ever since the Ford Administration, the 
     Executive branch has

[[Page E655]]

     operated under a wide-ranging and ambiguous ban on 
     ``assassination.'' Most recently, the ban was reiterated in 
     Executive Order 12333, which states that, ``[n]o person 
     employed or acting on behalf of the United States government 
     shall engage in, or conspire to engage in, assassination.''
       As you know, the debate about what does and does not 
     constitute ``assassination'' remains unsettled. However, the 
     practical result of this ban is that United States forces are 
     allowed to bomb military targets, hoping to kill terrorist 
     leaders collaterally, but are prevented from designing 
     surgical strikes for that purpose or working with others to 
     do so.
       I urge you to consider lifting this ban and designing a new 
     system so that the threat posed by individuals proven to be 
     directly responsible for the deaths of American citizens--
     such as Osama bin Laden or Saddam Hussein--can be eliminated 
     in cases where it is simply impossible to capture them by 
     ordinary means. I firmly believe such a system should be put 
     into place, and that it should also include strong and 
     effective safeguards against abuse, such as a requirement for 
     limited consultation with Congress.
       Taking action against a foreign leader posing a direct 
     threat to our armed forces or civilian citizens is a power 
     you already possess under the Constitution as commander-in-
     chief. Arbitrarily, and somewhat disingenuously purporting to 
     deny a President such a power by Executive Order reduces 
     credibility and hampers your role as commander-in-chief.
       As the threat posed to American citizens by terrorist 
     organizations continues to grow, it is important we use every 
     tool at hand to block those who would destroy our lives and 
     property from doing so. While final removal of terrorist 
     leaders is a draconian measure that should be used only 
     sparingly, there are, unfortunately, cases where it is 
     clearly warranted. I believe we should fashion a mechanism 
     for making such action possible, and would welcome the 
     opportunity to work with you in that endeavor.
       With kind regards, I am,
           Very truly yours,
                                                         Bob Barr,
                                               Member of Congress.

  At this time the Administration has not revoked these Executive 
Orders. So in turn I am introducing this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in supporting the 
Terrorist Elimination Act of 1999.

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