Glenn Greenwald: Could Obama Be Impeached for Waging War in Libya Without Approval of Congress? | Common Dreams

Amy Goodman at Democracy Now interviews Glenn Greenwald about possibility of impeaching the president. And he talks about in what ways Obama has acted like Bush and in some areas of policy he has surpassed Bush in an illegal or unconstitutional manner. Obama is continuing Bush 's agenda increasing executive powers with little oversight.

The New York Times recently broke the story that President Obama rejected the views of top administration lawyers when he decided he had the legal authority to continue U.S. military participation in the war in Libya without congressional authorization. Obama continues to face congressional opposition to the ongoing Libya attack. Republican House Speaker John Boehner has called on the White House to further clarify the legal basis for the war in Libya or face a cutoff of war funds. Last week, a bipartisan group of lawmakers filed a lawsuit accusing President Obama of violating the War Powers Act of 1973. To examine the legal dimensions of U.S. military intervention, we speak with Glenn Greenwald, a constitutional law attorney and political and legal blogger for Salon.com. “The idea that presidents can start wars on their own, without any congressional authorization, violates not just the law but the Constitution,” Greenwald said. “In theory, when the president violates the law and the Constitution, that’s an impeachable offense. At the same time, we’ve set a very low standard for our tolerance of rampant presidential law breaking.”


Glenn Greenwald: Could Obama Be Impeached for Waging War in Libya Without Approval of Congress? | Common Dreams