IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 72 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that absent congressional approval the Agreement Between the United States of America 

and the Republic of Iraq on the Withdrawal of United States Forces 

from Iraq and the Organization of Their Activities During Their Temporary Presence in Iraq is merely advisory and not legally binding on 

the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 15, 2009 

Ms. LEE of California (for herself, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. FILNER, Mr. 

GRIJALVA, Ms. WOOLSEY, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, and Mr. STARK) 

submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 

on Foreign Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 

absent congressional approval the Agreement Between 

the United States of America and the Republic of Iraq 

on the Withdrawal of United States Forces from Iraq 

and the Organization of Their Activities During Their 

Temporary Presence in Iraq is merely advisory and not 

legally binding on the United States, and for other purposes. 

Whereas the Framers of the Constitution of the United 

States intended that all significant foreign commitments 


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•HRES 72 IH 

by the United States Government be made by treaty or 

statute; 

Whereas the Constitution of the United States gives Congress 

the power to declare war, to raise and support armies, to 

provide and maintain a navy, to make rules governing 

such forces, to provide for organizing and calling forth 

the militia, to make rules concerning captures on land 

and water, and to regulate commerce with foreign nations; 

Whereas the Constitution of the United States also gives 

Congress the power to make all laws necessary for carrying out the powers vested in the Government, and the 

power to raise and spend money; 

Whereas in addition, the Senate has the responsibility of confirming appointments to diplomatic posts and by twothirds vote must give its advice and consent to treaties 

before such treaties become effective; 

Whereas Congress, established in Article I of the Constitution 

of the United States, is a co-equal branch of the Government, and each Member of Congress, regardless of political party, must resist encroachment by the executive 

branch on the constitutional prerogatives of Congress; 

Whereas on November 26, 2007, and without congressional 

consultation or input, United States President George W. 

Bush and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki signed 

the United States-Iraq Declaration of Principles for 

Friendship and Cooperation, a shared statement of intent 

that established common principles to frame the future 

relationship between the United States and Iraq; 

Whereas President Bush publicly stated that the relationship 

envisioned in the United States-Iraq Declaration of PrinVerDate Nov 24 2008 03:14 Jan 16, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR72.IH HR72

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•HRES 72 IH 

ciples for Friendship and Cooperation includes cooperation between the United States and Iraq in the political, 

diplomatic, economic, and security arenas; 

Whereas President Bush declared his intent, during 2008, to 

negotiate and conclude before he leaves office detailed arrangements that will codify the bilateral relationship between the United States and Iraq following the expiration 

of the mandate of the Multi-National Force—Iraq under 

chapter VII of the United Nations Charter and the concomitant resumption of Iraq’s normal status as a state 

with full legal and functional sovereignty and authorities 

and the restoration of Iraq’s legal international status; 

Whereas on November 17, 2008, Iraqi Foreign Minister 

Hoshiyar Zebari and United States Ambassador to Iraq 

Ryan Crocker signed the Agreement Between the United 

States of America and the Republic of Iraq on the Withdrawal of United States Forces from Iraq and the Organization of Their Activities During Their Temporary 

Presence in Iraq (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Agreement’’); 

Whereas the procedure followed by the Government of Iraq 

required the Agreement to be submitted to and approved 

by Parliament, the national legislature of the Republic of 

Iraq, which approved the Agreement in December 2008; 

in contrast the Agreement has not been submitted by the 

President to the United States Congress for approval as 

contemplated by the Constitution; 

Whereas the Agreement contemplates a timetable that could 

leave United States troops in Iraq until December 31, 

2011, which would cost American taxpayers more than 

$360 billion based on current spending levels, money that 


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•HRES 72 IH 

can be drawn from the United States Treasury only by 

a congressionally authorized appropriation of funds; 

Whereas the Agreement undermines the constitutional powers 

of the next president by subjecting United States military 

operations to the approval of the Iraqi Government, notwithstanding that throughout history, United States 

troops have been subjected to foreign control in peacekeeping operations only where authorized under treaties 

ratified by the Senate; 

Whereas the Agreement subjects thousands of private military contractors to Iraqi courts in the event that they are 

charged with crimes but does not specify the law to be 

applied or the procedural safeguards that must be observed by Iraqi courts to ensure due process and equal 

justice; and 

Whereas President Bush’s claim that he alone is empowered 

by the Constitution to negotiate and conclude detailed arrangements that will institutionalize the bilateral relationship between the United States and Iraq without any 

involvement of the Congress reflects a profound 

misreading of the Constitution: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep2 resentatives that— 

3 (1) the Agreement Between the United States 

4 of America and the Republic of Iraq on the With5 drawal of United States Forces from Iraq and the 

6 Organization of Their Activities During Their Tem7 porary Presence in Iraq (hereinafter referred to as 

8 the ‘‘Agreement’’) is not a genuine Status of Forces 


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•HRES 72 IH 

1 Agreement and lacks the force of law because it was 

2 formalized in a manner inconsistent with the re3 quirements of the United States Constitution; 

4 (2) Congress should consider the Agreement to 

5 be advisory in nature and should not be legally 

6 bound nor obligated to appropriate any of the funds 

7 necessary to carry out the terms of the Agreement; 

8 (3) the House of Representatives should con9 duct hearings during the 111th Congress to deter10 mine, inter alia, whether to authorize and fund the 

11 Agreement or to reject the Agreement to the extent 

12 that it— 

13 (A) contemplates the United States main14 taining United States troops in Iraq until De15 cember 31, 2011, at a cost of hundreds of bil16 lions of dollars to the United States Treasury; 

17 (B) subjects United States military oper18 ations to ‘‘the approval of the Iraqi govern19 ment’’, by giving operational control to ‘‘joint 

20 mobile operations command centers’’ controlled 

21 by a joint American-Iraqi committee; and 

22 (C) subjects thousands of private military 

23 contractors to Iraqi courts in the event that 

24 they are charged with serious crimes but does 

25 not specify what crimes are to be deemed ‘‘seriVerDate Nov 24 2008 01:11 Jan 16, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR72.IH HR72

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1 ous’’ and does not address the law to be applied 

2 or the procedural safeguards that must be ob3 served by Iraqi courts to ensure due process 

4 and equal justice; and 

5 (4) the House of Representatives should con6 duct hearings during the 111th Congress to deter7 mine the impact, if any, of the Agreement on the 

8 status of the nearly 50,000 Iraqi nationals held in 

9 preventive detention by the Iraqi Government and 

10 United States forces as well as any such foreign na11 tionals in Iraq who have been designated as ‘‘pro12 tected persons’’ under the Fourth Geneva Conven13 tion. 

Æ 


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