Political Quotes

“Secretary Powell at this very moment in the Middle East is striving mightily to effect a cease fire and develop more support for our war on terror, especially to the extent we may have to take military action against the country of Iraq. It is in that context that I discuss today another way the administration has prepared to deal specifically with the threat from Iraq and other countries similarly situated in the Middle East. On December 13, following a period of high-level negotiations, President Bush notified Russia of his intent to withdraw the United States from the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. Since then, I have addressed the Senate on the military justification for the President's decision and the question of how much a national ballistic missile defense system will cost. Today, I would like to discuss the President's constitutional authority to unilaterally exercise the right of withdrawal without the consent of the Senate or Congress as a whole. The President withdrew the United States from the treaty pursuant to Article XV, which allows either party to withdraw upon 6 months' notice if it determines that 'extraordinary events . . . have jeopardized its supreme interests.' I believe his action is a proper exercise of the authority of the chief executive to terminate a formal treaty to which the Senate had given its consent pursuant to Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution.”