Can Congress Stop the Iraq Troop Surge?
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When it comes to the Iraq war, President Bush says he is the only "decider." But even Republicans disagree. Can the Congress tell the President what to do? Can either party agree on what that should be? Plus, a recent audit shows there's little to show for the billions spent on Iraq reconstruction. On Reporter's Notebook, arrest warrants have been issued for US agents accused by Germany of "extraordinary rendition."
Making News
Little to Show for Billions Spent on Iraq Reconstruction ()
President Bush is pressing Congress for $1.2 billion more for Iraq reconstruction. At the same time, the latest audit of money already spent reveals an Olympic-sized swimming pool for a police academy that's never been used. David Wood is National Security Correspondent for the Baltimore Sun.
Guests:
- David Wood: national security correspondent for the Baltimore Sun
Main Topic
Who Really Is "The Decider?" ()
The dispute over sending more troops to Iraq is becoming, in part, an argument over the Constitutional separation of powers during wartime. Even Republicans dispute the President's claim that he is the sole "decider," insisting that Congress has power over more than just money. Can the Congress tell the President what to do in Iraq, presuming it wants to? Members of both parties are threading their way between opposition to an unpopular war and support for American troops in the field. We speak with political strategists, pollsters, and legal experts about the Constitutional issues and a political battle that’s setting the stage for the 2008 elections.
Guests:
- Jonathan Weisman: Congressional Reporter for the Washington Post, @jonathanweisman
- John McLaughlin: Republican pollster and strategist
- Doug Schoen: Democratic strategist and pollster
- Robert Turner: associate director of the University of Virginia's Center for National Security Law
- Louis Fisher: specialist in constitutional law at the Law Library of Congress
Links:
- Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Congress' Constitutional power to end a war
- Weisman's article on GOP dissent over Iraq
- Marbury v Madison (1803)
- Hamdan v Rumsfeld, US Supreme Court on (2005)
- Ex Parte Milligan (1866)
- Little v Barreme (1804), Wikipedia on
- US v Curtiss-Wright Export Corp (1936), US Supreme Court on
Reporter's Notebook
Germany Seeks Arrest of 13 CIA Agents in Kidnapping Case ()
The US practice of "extraordinary rendition" has created outrage in Europe. US agents seize terror suspects in a foreign country, then transport them to a third country for interrogation. Arrest warrants have been issued in Germany for 13 US intelligence agents accused of kidnapping a German citizen who says he was tortured. Italy may put 26 Americans on trial for snatching an Egyptian citizen off the streets of Milan. We get an update from Jane Mayer of the New Yorker and Jumana Musa of the ACLU.
Guests:
- Jane Mayer: staff writer for The New Yorker
- Jumana Musa: ACLU Advocacy Director for Domestic Human Rights, International Justice
Links:
Transcripts of To the Point are available from The Transcription Company, (818) 848-6500, or www.transcripts.net. A CD copy is available by calling 1.888.600.5279
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