More than 3,500 Oregon National Guard troops will be deployed by the end of the year, unless supporters of House Bill 2556 can convince Gov. Ted Kulongoski to take action.
HB 2556 would give the governor authority to withhold National Guard troops from federal deployment in situations where there is no legally valid authorization to use troops in a national conflict.
Supporters of House Resolution 4 and Senate Resolution 1 urge the governor to withhold the state’s National Guard deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan under the pretense that National Guard troops are intended for state use, unless otherwise authorized by Congress. However, Leah Bolger, Veterans for Peace Chapter 132 spokeswoman, said Congress’s Authorization for Use of Military Force from 2001 and 2002 is no longer valid.
Congress authorized the use of National Guard troops in 2001 during the “War on Terror” and again in 2002 before the United State’s invasion of Iraq.
“This is not a bunch of peace activists trying to pull out of Iraq. There were no weapons of mass destruction and the imminent threat of Saddam Hussein no longer exists,” Bolger said. “Therefore, the terms of Congress’s 2002 authorization have expired. Also, the War on Terror authorization inappropriately delegates war-making powers to the president, resulting in a continual call-up of the Guard.”
Bolger said the resolutions have been drafted to create pressure on Kulongoski to withhold sending guard troops, and the legislation shows some state legislators would support the governor.
However, Kulongoski spokesman Rem Nivens said no resolution will convince the governor he has the power to defy the federal government.
“The reality is, the legislature can come up with resolution after resolution, but the governor still won’t have the ability to stop the deployment of National Guard troops,” he said.
Nivens also said all the legal analyses and advice Kulongoski has received on the topic has led to the same conclusion: He is powerless to do anything because Congress authorized the use of state National Guard troops.
Captain Stephen Bowman, Oregon National Guard spokesman, suggests the current language of the U.S. Constitution allows for Congress’s 2001 and 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force to stand, and the only way to prevent National Guard troops from being deployed is to amend the Constitution.
“This isn’t something the governor has a say in,” he said. “It is in the Constitution.”
Despite the disagreement over what Kulongoski’s rights are, there are still campaigns spreading awareness about the issue.
The “Bring the Guard Home” campaign is a national effort to raise awareness about a state governor’s power over National Guard troops. The campaign began in Vermont in January 2008. So far five other states, Vermont, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Rhode Island and New Mexico, have drafted similar legislation in response to the group’s efforts.
State Sen. Bill Morrisette is committed to keeping Guard troops home.
“Repeatedly calling up National Guard troops is stretching it too far,” he said. “There has to be some new negotiation with the governor. He should start a draft if they need more people to fight overseas.”
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