SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
The Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protect Our Troops 
and Our Constitution Act of 2008’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) On November 26, 2007, by signing the Dec-
laration of Principles for a Long-Term Relationship 
of Cooperation and Friendship Between the Republic 
of Iraq and the United States of America (herein-
after in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Declaration of 
Principles’’), the President of the United States 
pledged to negotiate by July 2008 an agreement to 
replace the United Nations mandate that currently 
provides international legal authority as well as im-
munity from Iraqi prosecution for United States 
Armed Forces and other Coalition forces operating 
in Iraq. 
(2) In the Declaration of Principles, the Presi-
dent pledged that this agreement would include the 
following security commitments by the United 
States: 
(A) ‘‘Supporting the Republic of Iraq in 
defending its democratic system against inter-
nal and external threats.’’. 
(B) ‘‘Providing security assurances and 
commitments to the Republic of Iraq to deter 
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foreign aggression against Iraq that violates its 
sovereignty and integrity of its territories, wa-
ters, or airspace.’’. 
(C) ‘‘Supporting the Republic of Iraq in its 
efforts to combat all terrorist groups, at the 
forefront of which is Al-Qaeda, Saddamists, and 
all other outlaw groups regardless of affiliation, 
and destroy their logistical networks and their 
sources of finance, and defeat and uproot them 
from Iraq.’’. 
(3) However, in testimony before the United 
States Senate on February 6, 2008, Secretary of 
Defense Robert Gates effectively renounced this 
pledge by the President when he said, ‘‘[T]he status 
of forces agreement that is being discussed will not 
contain a commitment to defend Iraq, and neither 
will any strategic framework agreement. My under-
standing is—and it’s, frankly, a clearer point than 
I made earlier—and we certainly do not consider the 
declaration of principles a security commitment to 
the Iraqis.’’. 
(4) On November 26, 2007, the President’s 
Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Af-
ghanistan, General Douglas Lute, stated in a press 
briefing that permanent United States military bases 
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in Iraq ‘‘will certainly be a key item for negotiation 
next year’’. On January 28, 2008, when signing into 
law the National Defense Authorization Act for Fis-
cal Year 2008, which includes a ban on permanent 
United States military bases in Iraq, President 
George W. Bush indicated in a signing statement ac-
companying the bill that he would not be bound by 
a provision of that law that prohibits the United 
States from establishing permanent military bases in 
Iraq. 
(5) However, in testimony before the Senate on 
February 6, 2008, Secretary of Defense Gates stat-
ed, ‘‘The fact is, in every meeting that I’ve taken 
part in, it has been affirmed from the president on 
down that we do not want permanent bases in 
Iraq.’’. 
(6) General Lute stated in a press briefing on 
November 26, 2007, in response to a question as to 
whether the Administration would seek congressional 
input into the agreement, ‘‘We don’t anticipate now 
that these negotiations will lead to the status of a 
formal treaty which would then bring us to formal 
negotiations or formal inputs from the Congress.’’. 
However, the Department of State has failed to con-
sult with congressional leaders on the Declaration of 
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Principles as required by the Department of State’s 
Circular 175 procedure, which implements United 
States law regarding the conduct of negotiations for 
international agreements. 
(7) However, in testimony before the Senate on 
February 6, 2008, Secretary of Defense Gates stat-
ed, ‘‘My view is that there ought to be a great deal 
of openness and transparency to the Congress as we 
negotiate this status of forces agreement so that you 
can satisfy yourselves that those kinds of commit-
ments are not being made, and that there are no 
surprises in this.’’. 
(8) According to the Congressional Research 
Service, while the primary purpose of a status of 
forces agreement between the United States and an-
other country or organization is typically to provide 
United States Armed Forces with immunity from 
local prosecution, and no existing status of forces 
agreement authorizes offensive combat operations by 
United States Armed Forces (absent reference to a 
treaty, law, or United Nations Security Council reso-
lution), Secretary of Defense Gates and Secretary of 
State Condoleezza Rice have written in an opinion 
piece published February 13, 2008, in the Wash-
ington Post that it is the intention of the Adminis-
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tration to have the status of forces agreement with 
Iraq include the ‘‘authority to fight’’ for United 
States Armed Forces engaged in combat operations. 
(9) The inconsistencies between the various 
statements and pledges described in paragraphs (1) 
through (8) raise significant questions about the Ad-
ministration’s objectives in seeking new agreements 
with Iraq. 
(10)(A) Since August 6, 2004, United States 
Armed Forces and other Coalition forces in Iraq 
have had international legal authority to operate in 
Iraq under the United Nations mandate for the Mul-
tinational Force–Iraq, most recently renewed in De-
cember 2007 until December 31, 2008, and have 
had immunity from local prosecution under an Iraqi 
law known as CPA Order 17, which is dependent on 
that mandate. 
(B) The Iraqi Ambassador to the United 
States, Samir Sumaidaie, said on February 5, 2008, 
‘‘If we cannot have an agreement by that time [De-
cember 31, 2008,] we would have no choice but to 
go back to the Security Council. Basically, we need 
to have some legal cover for foreign forces.’’. 
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SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS. 
No funds appropriated or otherwise made available 
to any department or agency of the United States may 
be used— 
(1) to establish or maintain any permanent or 
long-term United States military base or facility in 
Iraq; or 
(2) to implement any agreement that is con-
sistent with the security commitments of the United 
States to Iraq under the Declaration of Principles, 
including the security commitments described in 
subparagraphs (A) through (C) of section 1(2) of 
this Act, or any agreement that provides ‘‘authority 
to fight’’ for United States Armed Forces engaged 
in combat operations, other than for self-defense 
purposes, unless the agreement is in the form of a 
treaty with respect to which the Senate has given its 
advice and consent to ratification under Article II of 
the Constitution of the United States or the agree-
ment is approved by an Act of Congress enacted 
after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) long-term relations between the United 
States and Iraq should be determined by the United 
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States Administration taking office on January 20, 
2009; 
(2) in determining its policy toward Iraq, the 
United States Administration referred to in para-
graph (1) should consult fully with the United 
States Congress, the Government of Iraq, Coalition 
partners, and Iraq’s neighbors; and 
(3) to maintain current international legal au-
thority as well as immunity from Iraqi prosecution 
for United States Armed Forces and other Coalition 
forces operating in Iraq while the United States Ad-
ministration referred to in paragraph (1) determines 
United States policy toward Iraq, the current United 
States Administration should encourage the Govern-
ment of Iraq to request the renewal of the United 
Nations mandate for Iraq beyond December 31, 
2008. 
Æ 
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