Political Quotes

“although there was considerable support for the legality of the provision, I thought it best to proceed with caution in these circumstances. These are matters of human rights under international law, on which we have rightly lectured others, and involve our solemn obligations under treaties. I sought the views of other experts. Letters concluding that the expatriation provision did not raise any problems under international law were received from Prof. Detlev Vagts of Harvard Law School and Prof. Andreas F. Lowenfeld of New York University School of Law. The State Department issued a lengthier analysis upholding the legality of the provision, and the American Law Division of the Congressional Research Service reached a like conclusion. However, there were dissenting views, most notably Prof. Hurst Hannum of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, who first wrote to me on March 24.”