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- WASHINGTON (CNN) - Seventeen U.S. congressmen filed suit against President
Bill Clinton Friday seeking an end to military strikes against Yugoslavia.
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- The representatives, 15 Republicans and
2 Democrats, say the hostilities violate the 1973 War Powers Act which
requires Congress to declare war or otherwise vote in favor of the military
action.
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- The suit charges that "Defendant
William Jefferson Clinton is unconstitutionally conducting an offensive
military attack against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia without obtaining
a declaration of war or other explicit authorization from Congress and
despite Congress' decision not to authorize such action."
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- In a series of votes earlier this week,
the House of Representatives failed to muster the votes to either declare
war or support the ongoing airstrikes against Yugoslavia.
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- The suit argues that the War Powers Act
requires troops be removed from military action 60 days after hostilities
begin -- in this case May 25th -- unless congress okays their continued
involvement.
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- Filing the suit are Ohio Democratic Reps.
Dennis Kucinich and Marcy Kaptur. They joined Republican Reps. Tom Campbell
(California), Bob Barr (Georgia), Roscoe Bartlett (Maryland), Dan Burton
(Indiana), John Cooksey (Louisiana), Philip Crane (Illinois), Walter Jones
(North Carolina), Donald Manzullo (Illinois), Charles Norwood (Georgia),
Ron Paul (Texas), Tom Petri (Wisconsin), Marshall Sanford (South Carolina),
Joe Scarborough (Florida), Bob Schaffer (Colorado), and Thomas Tancredo
(Colorado).
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- U.S. District Court Judge Harold H. Greene
has been assigned the case.
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