Army officer stationed in Kuwait sues Obama – Legality of decision to boost troops to counter ISIS questioned

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KUWAIT CITY, May 6: A 28-yearold army officer stationed in Kuwait has dragged US President Barack Obama to court, questioning the legality of his decision to increase troops in Iraq and Syria to counter the Islamic State (ISIS), reports Al-Rai daily.

Capt. Nathan Michael Smith, an intelligence officer, claimed in the lawsuit the decision by Obama to wage a war against the Islamic State or the so-called DAESH lacks proper authorization from the Congress, while the President has claimed that he does not need any new legal authority from the Congress to issue such orders to the military.

The President has maintained that powers given to him by the Congress after the Sept 11, 2001 terror attacks enable him to wage a war against IS operatives but critics believe he is stretching the authorization too far, given the fact that the Islamic State is at odds with the al Qaeda leadership, which owned the 2001 attacks on US soil.

Moreover, DAESH did not exist in 2001 and does not operate out of Afghanistan like the al-Qaeda founded by the late Osama Bin Laden. But the Obama administration argued that DAESH used to be an al-Qaeda affiliate in Iraq during the Iraq war and Laden’s death does not mean the country stops the fight against the affiliates.

The lawsuit comes after a third American service member lost his life fighting DAESH militants in the recent past.

Although in complete support of fighting the militants, the army officer said taking a decision without the authorization of the Congress was not in compliance with the constitutional process. “To honor my oath, I am asking the court to tell the President that he must get proper authority from Congress, under the War Powers Resolution, to wage the war against ISIS in Iraq and Syria,” the army officer reportedly said in the lawsuit.

He is being represented by lawyer David Remes, who has been the lawyer for many Guantanamo detainees in habeas corpus lawsuits, and Bruce Ackerman, a Yale Law School professor.

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