IV 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 417 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that President Barack 
Obama should immediately work to reverse damaging and illegal actions 
taken by the Bush/Cheney Administration and collaborate with Congress 
to proactively prevent any further abuses of executive branch power. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 7, 2009 
Ms. BALDWIN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Armed 
Services, Foreign Affairs, and Select Intelligence (Permanent Select), for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
President Barack Obama should immediately work to 
reverse damaging and illegal actions taken by the Bush/ 
Cheney Administration and collaborate with Congress to 
proactively prevent any further abuses of executive 
branch power. 
Whereas over the past several years, serious questions have 
been raised about the conduct of high ranking Bush/Che-
ney Administration officials in relation to some of the 
most basic elements of our democracy: respect for the 
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•HRES 417 IH 
rule of law, the principle of checks and balances, and the 
fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Bill of Rights; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration misled the Amer-
ican public and the U.S. Congress regarding the threat 
of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction and alleged, despite 
all evidence to the contrary, a relationship between Iraq 
and al Qaeda, and this deceit dragged our country into 
a preemptive and unjustified war that has taken the lives 
of more than 4,000 U.S. troops, injured 30,000 more, 
and will cost our Nation more than a trillion dollars; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration undermined na-
tional security by manipulating and exaggerating evi-
dence of Iran’s nuclear weapons capabilities despite no 
real evidence that Iran had the intention or capability of 
attacking the U.S., and then deliberately downplayed the 
December 2007 National Intelligence Estimate that re-
ported with ‘‘high confidence’’ that Iran stopped devel-
oping nuclear weapons in 2003 because of international 
pressure; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration undertook a broad 
assault on civil liberties through the suspension of habeas 
corpus and claiming the power to declare any person an 
‘‘enemy combatant,’’ blatantly ignoring the Geneva Con-
vention protections that the U.S. helped create, ratify, 
and which carry the weight of law; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration endorsed the tor-
ture and rendition of prisoners in violation of stated 
American policy and values, as well as international law, 
and then destroyed videotapes which may have substan-
tiated such torture; 
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•HRES 417 IH 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration violated the Fourth 
Amendment and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act 
of 1978 by spying on Americans without a court order 
or oversight; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration abused the state 
secrets privilege in recent legal challenges regarding 
warrantless wiretapping, torture, and rendition, and this 
administration’s use of the state secrets privilege was to 
the detriment of the rights of private litigants harmed by 
egregious misconduct, as well as Americans’ trust in the 
judicial system; 
Whereas Bush/Cheney Administration officials consistently 
impeded congressional investigations into allegations of 
wrongdoing by refusing to comply with congressional sub-
poenas; 
Whereas the Bush/Cheney Administration claims that then- 
senior presidential advisers were immune from congres-
sional subpoenas impeded congressional oversight, under-
mined the rule of law, damaged our democracy, and were 
rejected by a U.S. District Court; 
Whereas U.S. Attorneys pursued politically motivated pros-
ecutions in violation of the law, and allegedly at the di-
rection of the Bush/Cheney Administration; 
Whereas Bush/Cheney Administration officials in the Depart-
ment of Justice systematically violated the law and com-
mitted misconduct in basing hiring decisions for career 
prosecutor positions, detailees to senior Department of-
fices, and immigration judgeships on the applicants’ po-
litical affiliations and view; 
Whereas it appears Bush/Cheney Administration officials in-
tentionally revealed the identity of Valerie Plame Wilson 
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•HRES 417 IH 
as a covert agent of the CIA for political retribution, and 
then intentionally obstructed justice by disseminating 
false information through the White House press office; 
Whereas President Bush showed contempt for the legislative 
branch and disregard for the law through the excessive 
expansion of presidential power in misusing signing state-
ments that declared his intent to ignore provisions of leg-
islation he signed into law; 
Whereas Bush/Cheney Administration officials systematically 
shielded from access and destroyed public documents rel-
evant to the conduct of the Administration by utilizing 
non-governmental e-mail accounts for official communica-
tions; 
Whereas Vice President Cheney consistently placed self-inter-
est over serving the American people, exemplified by his 
claim that the Office of the Vice President is not an enti-
ty within the executive branch for the alleged purpose of 
shielding the activities of his office from public scrutiny; 
Whereas President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and other 
Bush/Cheney Administration officials were presented with 
ample opportunities to collaborate with Congress and re-
verse the above listed damaging and abusive actions; 
Whereas despite these opportunities, they instead chose to 
show contempt for the Constitution and the legislative 
branch, compelling Americans and Congress to look to 
the next administration for executive branch account-
ability; 
Whereas, on November 4, 2008, Americans elected President 
of the United States Barack Obama; 
Whereas, on January 20, 2009, President Obama stood be-
fore the American people and took an oath of office, 
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•HRES 417 IH 
swearing to ‘‘. . . preserve, protect and defend the Con-
stitution of the United States’’; 
Whereas this commitment and obligation is so fundamental 
to our democracy that our Nation’s founders proscribed 
this oath in our Constitution; 
Whereas no President or Congress has the authority to over-
ride that document, whereby ‘‘We the People’’ conferred 
upon the branches of government limited and defined 
power, and provided for meaningful checks and balances; 
Whereas the actions taken by President Obama will impact 
the conduct of future Presidents, perhaps for genera-
tions; 
Whereas President Obama has already begun work to reaf-
firm American values of justice and freedom; 
Whereas President Obama issued a January 22, 2009, execu-
tive order requiring that Guantanamo Bay detention fa-
cility be closed within one year and that until its closure, 
conditions of confinement at Guantanamo must comply 
with Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and 
all other applicable laws; 
Whereas President Obama issued a January 22, 2009, execu-
tive order to promote the safe, lawful, and humane treat-
ment of individuals in United States custody by prohib-
iting any interrogation technique or approach, or any 
treatment related to interrogation, that is not authorized 
by and listed in Army Field Manual, and reaffirms that 
all terrorist suspects held by the United States abroad 
are protected under Common Article 3 of the Geneva 
Conventions; 
Whereas President Obama issued a January 22, 2009, execu-
tive order to establish a Special Task Force on Detainee 
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•HRES 417 IH 
Disposition to thoroughly review detention policy options 
and provide a report to the President within 6 months; 
Whereas President Obama stated in his February 24, 2009, 
remarks to the Joint Session of Congress, ‘‘without ex-
ception or equivocation that the United States of America 
does not torture’’; 
Whereas President Obama issued a March 9, 2009, Memo-
randum for the Heads of Executive Departments and 
Agencies on Presidential Signing Statements to clarify 
his intention to issue signing statements ‘‘to address con-
stitutional concerns only when it is appropriate to do so 
as a means of discharging my constitutional responsibil-
ities’’ and to outline steps to promote greater trans-
parency and accountability in issuing signing statements; 
Whereas President Obama’s efforts to renew America must 
include restoring executive branch accountability through 
proactively preventing future abuses of power by his or 
future administrations; and 
Whereas the actions detailed below may assist in his work to 
restore the public’s faith in our Government: Now, there-
fore, be it 
Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Rep-
resentatives that President Obama should take the nec-
essary steps to do the following— 
(1) AFFIRM
OUR
NATION’S
COMMITMENT
TO 
UPHOLDING
THE
CONSTITUTION
OF
THE
UNITED 
STATES.—President Obama must immediately and 
publicly reaffirm our Nation’s commitment to the 
rule of law, the principle of checks and balances, re-
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•HRES 417 IH 
spect for the legislative process, and the funda-
mental freedoms enshrined in the Bill of Rights. 
(2) FULLY INVESTIGATE BUSH/CHENEY ADMIN-
ISTRATION OFFICIALS’ ALLEGED CRIMES AND HOLD 
THEM
ACCOUNTABLE
FOR
ANY
ILLEGAL
ACTS.— 
President Obama must cooperate fully with congres-
sional oversight efforts to establish an independent 
investigation, as well as to address potential statute 
of limitation concerns, in order to hold all Bush/Che-
ney Administration officials accountable for any 
crimes they may have committed. 
(3) HOLD ACCOUNTABLE BUSH/CHENEY ADMIN-
ISTRATION OFFICIALS WHO SHOWED OR SHOW CON-
TEMPT FOR THE LEGAL DUTY TO COMPLY WITH 
CONGRESSIONAL
SUBPOENAS.—President 
Obama 
must fully support Congress’ constitutionally rooted 
right of access to the information it needs to per-
form its legislative and oversight functions enun-
ciated in Article I of the Constitution. 
(4) HOLD ACCOUNTABLE BUSH/CHENEY ADMIN-
ISTRATION OFFICIALS WHO DISCLOSED THE IDEN-
TITY
OF
ANY
COVERT
INTELLIGENCE
AGENT.— 
President Obama must cooperate fully with congres-
sional efforts to ensure that the disclosure of the 
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