This article, by William H. McMichael, was originally published by The Army Times, March 5, 2009
A Maryland state senator is pushing a bill that would require the governor to prevent the mobilization of the state’s National Guard for federal duty unless Congress has authorized the use of military force or issued a declaration of war.
The bill also would authorize the governor to ask for the return of deployed units in certain circumstances.
But unlike initiatives such as the multi-state “Bring the Guard Home” campaign that are rooted in anti-war sentiment, State Sen. Richard Madaleno Jr.’s bill aims to influence national policy and practice. Madaleno said he wants Congress to play a larger role in future troop deployment decisions, including determining whether the Guard truly needs to be part of any overseas military action.
“I think one of the lessons — certainly, of Iraq — is, ‘We gave this authority to the president,’ ” Madaleno said after a March 4 committee hearing on the bill in Annapolis, Md.
After the successful invasion, public awareness waned, which “allowed a policy drift,” Madaleno said. “And if you put in place certain additional checks, ... you potentially provide the framework for Congress to do something and remain engaged in the oversight of the conflict.”
The debate over which branch of government has the authority to declare war has continued for decades. World War II was the last conflict initiated by a formal declaration of war. Congress in 2001 gave President George W. Bush blanket authority to deploy troops in response to terrorist attacks or threats, clearing the way for Operation Enduring Freedom, and in 2002 authorized the use of military force in Iraq.
But many of the conflicts or military strikes of the past 60 years have been fought, at least initially, without the approval of the body with the constitutional authority to “declare war” — most famously in Korea, but also in Libya, Grenada, Panama, Operation Desert Shield, Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Sudan, the former Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Kosovo.
Madaleno, a Democrat, said he supported the Iraq invasion, although he said hebelieves there were “serious gaps in how the war was prosecuted after ... the first six months.”
At the same time, he argued, “If we are actually going to be actively engaged in conflicts around the world for a variety of reasons, how do we create a political process that makes sure that the people remain engaged and supportive of the conflicts that we’re in? It shouldn’t just be the executive branch that is solely responsible for that decision-making. We have to create a political process that keeps the public engaged, informed, through their elected representatives.”
State Sen. George Edwards, a Republican, said he wasn’t familiar with Madaleno’s bill, but he indicated he would not be inclined to support it.
“Maybe there’s going to be times when something needs to be done without a declaration of war,” he said. “We’re part of the United States of America. We take things from the federal government, [like] when they want to give us this stimulus package money. The federal government buys most of our military equipment. When people join the Guard, they know the potential of being called up to active duty to protect the interests of the United States. I think it’s working fine just the way it is.”
The Maryland National Guard is staying out of the debate. “We have no position on this bill,” said Army Lt. Col. Charles Kohler, spokesman for the Maryland Guard. “Our job in the military is to follow the orders” of civilian leadership.
The Maryland Guard has about 300 troops mobilized and deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo and Bosnia, Kohler said. Over the 2007-08 timeframe, some 1,200 troops were deployed to Iraq, most with the 58th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, in what Kohler said was the Maryland Guard’s largest combat-zone deployment ever.
About 5,000 troops serve in the Maryland Army National Guard, with another 1,500 in the state’s Air National Guard, according to Kohler.
Currently, 34,851 Army National Guard and Air National Guard troops, and 24,717 members of the four Reserve forces, are deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas considered part of Operation Enduring Freedom, according to the Pentagon.
Maryland is also home to a Bring the Guard Home campaign, which argues that the National Guard is unlawfully deployed because the aims of the war in Iraq outlined in the 2002 congressional authorization for use of force have been achieved and that the authorization did not provide for “an indefinite assignment of State Guard members to the National Guard of the United States.”
Despite the differing emphasis in his bill, Madaleno — whose photo and bill are displayed on the campaign’s Web page — said he wouldn’t mind if the Maryland group’s and others’ initiatives were also successful, as they would have the same effect.
“By doing it this way, I’m trying to take a slightly different tack than several other states, where they’ve focused solely on the resolution to bring the Guard home from Iraq now,” Madaleno said. “And I’m trying to refocus and broaden the debate a little bit: What are the lessons of this conflict that inform us for the next conflict?”