Reply #4: Unequivocally yes, it was illegal [View All]

[htuttle]

Here's a link to a page of links to articles by lawyers and jurists.
http://www.robincmiller.com/ir-legal.htm

About 20+ of them say the war was illegal, and so that this is a fair and balanced post, 2 of them say the war was not illegal.

This article sums up the case that it was illegal pretty well:
http://www.robincmiller.com/iraq-fr.htm

Regarding Resolution 1441:

U.S. ambassador John Negroponte's statement is described as follows: "The resolution contained, he said, no 'hidden triggers' and no 'automaticity' with the use of force. The procedure to be followed was laid out in the resolution." The description of U.K. ambassador Jeremy Greenstock's statement is similar: "He said there was no 'automaticity' in the resolution. If there was a further Iraqi breach of its disarmament obligations, the matter would return to the Council for discussion."
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2002/SC7564.doc.htm

I'd add one thing. Bush committed an impeachable offense by starting the war, since he violated the UN charter. Article VI of the Constitution states that treaties signed by our government have the full weight of the law, and are on a par with laws passed by Congress. Therefore, Bush violated Artitcle VI of the Constitution by violating the UN charter.

It's not so much a matter of "who's going to enforce it?" Our own constitution charges us with enforcing it. The rest of the planet is counting on us to enforce our own constitution. Sadly, I believe they will be let down.

On the bright side, many war criminals have been caught and charged years after their offenses. One can hope that the parties involved in the invasion of Iraq will have to worry about evading prosecution for many years to come. Perhaps one day, our nation will return to the rule of law, and the criminals that started this 'war' will be held accountable for their actions.