2009/02/18:Cap Times: Group Demands Review Of Guard Deployment - Wisconsin Bring the Guard Home Campaign

Group Demands Review Of Guard Deployment
The Capital Times :: THE CAP TIMES :: 11
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Jane Burns The Capital Times jburns@madison.com

As more than 3,000 state soldiers leave this week for eventual duty in Iraq, a statewide group is working to ensure that future deployments of the Wisconsin National Guard pass legal muster.

"Bring the Guard Home- It's the Law" is part of a national campaign (bringtheguardhome.org) to challenge the deployment of Guard forces in Iraq. The effort began in Vermont in 2007 and has spread to 20 states.

The campaign in Wisconsin does not affect this week's deployment. But Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, is working on legislation that would require Wisconsin's governors to evaluate the legality of orders for future guard deployments. If the governor determines the order is not legal, the deployment order would likely then be reviewed in federal court.

Black said that questions have been raised as to whether the authorization for force in Iraq continues to be valid. "It would be valuable to have a process for future federalization orders, so that those questions are resolved," he said.

Ben Manski, a Madison attorney and national coordinator for the "Bring the Guard Home" campaign, said that the reasons the federal government gave for authorizing force in Iraq - removing Saddam Hussein, the search for weapons of mass destruction and the U.N. Security Council resolution that expired on Dec. 31 - are no longer valid. Manski said governors traditionally sign release orders for guard deployments but it's unclear if that has been done in Wisconsin and elsewhere in recent years.

States involved in the "Bring the Guard Home" campaign are challenging the status quo of guard deployment in a variety of ways. Some are calling for resolutions to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; others are challenging the constitutionality of the orders in the first place. Black's proposal would put legislation in place to give the governor a check and balance against future federal orders.

Manski says the time is ripe for such action.

"Now that we have a new administration in Washington and a new Legislature here, this is a good moment to close the door on eight years of runaway presidential power and ensure the guard are not abused," he said.

Black said a preliminary draft of the bill has been reviewed and he'll likely be ready to seek legislative co-sponsors next month.

It is important to pass such legislation even though President Barack Obama has pledged to end the war in Iraq, Black said: "We should never pass a law based on the president now, but who it might be in the future. We've learned a few hard lessons under former President Bush."