Ed Bryant’s votes against U.S. sovereignty.

Ed Bryant’s votes against U.S. sovereignty. Foreign Aid for NATO Expansion, H.R. 3564. This legislation calls for the inclusion of all former members of the Warsaw Pact nations (except Russia) into a NATO membership track and would fund $60 million in military assistance to speed the inclusion of Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is a military alliance formed under the auspices of chapter eight of the United Nations Charter, and member nations pledge that “an armed attack against one or more of them… shall be considered and attack against them all.” Representative Harry Johnston (D-FL) protested: “How many of you have any idea what the expansion of our military obligation will be when we expand NATO?… Are you willing now to commit American soldiers to a border dispute between Lithuania and Russia over the enclave of Kaliningrad? Are you willing to send troops to Latvia because they have a fight with Belarus? Are you willing to send troops to Ukraine because of a conflict with Russia over the Black Sea fleet and Crimea?” (July 23, 1996 Congressional Record, pages H8147-48, roll call 338) Ed Bryant voted for this expansion. (Source: The New American October 28, 1996) Withdrawal from the United Nations, Amendment to H.R. 1757. During consideration of the State Department authorization bill, Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced this amendment to get the U.S. out of the United Nations. This measure also called for repealing the United Nations Participation Act of 1945, closing the United States Mission to the United Nations, repealing the United Nations Headquarters Agreement Act, and terminating U.S. participation in UN peacekeeping operations. (June 4, 1997 Congressional Record page H3343, roll call 163) Ed Bryant voted against this amendment. (Source: The New American August 18, 1997) Creation of a Global Criminal Court, Motion on H. Con. Res. 137. This non-binding resolution would urge the President and the Secretary of State to “work actively and urgently within the international community for the adoption of a United Nations Security Council resolution establishing an International Criminal Court for Iraq.” The orders of this new UN court would likely be enforced by risking the lives of American servicemen, and the court could easily be expanded into a general global criminal court, which could try Americans. Opposing the measure, Rep Ron Paul (R-TX) asked: “Where is it the authority of the Constitution for us to police the world?” (November 13, 1997 Congressional Record, pages H10916-17, roll call 637) Ed Bryant voted for this motion. (Source: The New American July 6, 1998) De-funding the United Nations. Representative Ron Paul (R-TX), proposed a measure that would eliminate all funding for the United Nations from the State Department Reauthorization bill, H.R. 2415. Rep. Paul explained that “this does not get us out of the United Nations. It is a step in the right direction, obviously,” A necessary step because this year alone the United Nations has called for confiscation of nearly all civilian-owned firearms, global taxation without representation, a world central bank, world financial controls with a redistributive mechanism, an unlimited ability to intervene in a nation’s internal affairs, and a global criminal court without the habeas corpus guarantee and other rights Americans are accustomed to in our courts. (July 20, 1999 Roll Call 314) Ed Bryant voted against this bill. (Source: The New American January 3, 2000) WTO Withdrawal. Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) offered this resolution to withdraw the United States from the World Trade Organization. Paul explained that U.S. membership in the WTO “is an unconstitutional approach to managing trade. We cannot transfer the power to manage trade from the Congress to anyone. The Constitution is explicit. ‘Congress shall have the power to regulate foreign commerce.’ We cannot transfer that authority. Transferring that authority to the WTO is like the President transferring his authority as Commander in Chief to the Speaker of the House.” (June 21, 2000 Roll Call 310) Ed Bryant voted against withdrawal. (Source: The New American November 6, 2000) De-funding the United Nations. During consideration of the appropriations bill for the Commerce, Justice, and State Departments (H.R. 2500), Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) offered an amendment that stated: “None of the funds appropriated in this Act may be used for any United States contribution to the United Nations or any affiliated agency of the United Nations.” Paul’s intent was to effectively get the U.S. out of the UN by cutting off U.S. contributions to the UN. (July 18, 2001 Roll Call 245). Ed Bryant Voted against this amendment. (Source: The New American December 3, 2001) NATO Expansion. This bill’s self-described purpose (H.R. 3167) is: “To endorse the vision of further enlargement of the NATO Alliance articulated by President George W. Bush on June 15, 2001, and by former President William J. Clinton on October 22, 1996…” In this bill the House “… reaffirms its [Congress’] previous expressions of support for continued enlargement of the NATO Alliance contained in the NATO Participation Act of 1994, the NATO Enlargement Facilitation Act of 1996, and the European Security Act of 1998…” This bill also authorizes a total of $55.5 million in military aid for fiscal 2002 for Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and Romania. However, Congress should be acting to preserve our national sovereignty by getting our nation out of NATO. NATO was established as a subsidiary of the United Nations by the North Atlantic Treaty (April 4, 1949), which stated in its Article 1: “The Parties undertake, as set fourth in the Charter of the United Nations, … to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations.” (November 7, 2001 Roll Call 431) Ed Bryant voted for this expansion. (Source: The New American July 15, 2002) War Authorization Against Iraq. This joint resolution (House Joint Resolution 114) authorizes the president “to use the Armed Forces of the United States as he determines to be necessary and appropriate in order to enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.” However, since the Constitution gives Congress the sole responsibility for declaring war, this resolution represents congressional abdication of its responsibility. Furthermore, the main thrust of the joint resolution is that the president is authorized to use the Armed Forces of the United States to “strictly enforce through the United Nations Security Council all relevant Security Council resolutions regarding Iraq.” That is, the purpose of the resolution is to enforce UN Security Council dictates. (October 10, 2002 Roll Call 455) Ed Bryant voted for this authorization. (Source: The New American November 4, 2002)