Angie Craig: “last December, President Clinton deposited his signature to the Rome treaty, thereby making the United States party to…”

“last December, President Clinton deposited his signature to the Rome treaty, thereby making the United States party to the creation of a permanent International Criminal Court with unlimited jurisdiction. Once created, this court will have the right to prosecute U.S. citizens without any of the guarantees or protections provided by the Constitution. This will also affect our ability to protect men and women of our uniformed services and meet our military commitments to our allies. President Clinton even acknowledged as he deposited his signature that the Rome treaty had, in his own words, ``significant flaws'' and would not send it to the Senate for ratification. In his confirmation hearing testimony, Secretary Powell made it clear that the administration would not send this treaty to the Senate for ratification. However, in my opinion and the opinion of others, this is not enough. Once the 60th country ratifies the treaty, the United States and her citizens will become subject to the jurisdiction of the ICC, regardless of Senate approval under the treaty's own terms. This is precisely why we cannot simply allow the treaty to just be confirmed and collect dust. I believe it is incumbent upon all of us to try to bring, in essence, the treaty down. U.S. Armed Forces operating overseas in peacekeeping operations could conceivably be prosecuted by the ICC for protecting the vital interests of the United States.”