Steven Aftergood of the Federation of American Scientists‘ Secrecy News:
The legislative history of the September 14, 2001 Congressional resolution authorizing the use of force in response to the September 11 attacks is concisely examined in a new report of the Congressional Research Service.
The 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, or AUMF, has been in the news lately because the Bush Administration has claimed that it provided statutory authority for the National Security Agency to conduct warrantless surveillance within the United States, a claim that has been disputed by some in Congress and elsewhere.
The new CRS legislative history notes that the White House had initially sought legislative authority “to deter and pre-empt any future acts of terrorism or aggression against the United States.”
But “This language would have seemingly authorized the President, without durational limitation, and at his sole discretion, to take military action against any nation, terrorist group or individuals in the world without having to seek further authority from the Congress.”
“It would have granted the President open-ended authority to act against all terrorism and terrorists or potential aggressors against the United States anywhere, not just the authority to act against the terrorists involved in the September 11, 2001 attacks, and those nations, organizations and persons who had aided or harbored the terrorists.
“As a consequence, this portion of the language in the proposed White House draft resolution was strongly opposed by key legislators in Congress and was not included in the final version of the legislation that was passed,” the CRS explained.
A copy of the new CRS publication was obtained by Secrecy News.
See “Authorization For Use Of Military Force in Response to the 9/11 Attacks (P.L. 107-40): Legislative History,” January 4, 2006: (pdf)
CRS ON DECLARATIONS OF WAR AND AUMFS
The distinction between a formal declaration of war and an authorization for use of military force was addressed in an exceptionally informative report of the Congressional Research Service in 2003.
“With respect to domestic law, a declaration of war automatically brings into effect numerous standby statutory authorities conferring special powers on the President with respect to the military, foreign trade, transportation, communications, manufacturing, alien enemies, etc.”
“In contrast, no standby authorities appear to be triggered automatically by an authorization for the use of force.”
The history of both categories is delineated, including the texts of the eleven formal declarations of war and the most important authorizations for use of military force, along with an itemization of the various statutes that are triggered directly or indirectly in each case.
The 112 page CRS report is not generally available in the public domain. A copy was obtained by Secrecy News.
See “Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications,” updated January 14, 2003: (pdf)