Most Presbyterians in Congress backed
war resolution
At least one legislator was swayed by PC(USA)
policy on Iraq
by Evan Silverstein, Presbyterian
News Service
LOUISVILLE -- October 16, 2002 [posted here 10-19-02]
-- In the recent debate in Congress over giving President Bush authority
to use force against Iraq, Rep. Eva Clayton, a North Carolina Democrat
who also is a Presbyterian elder, turned to her church for guidance.
Members of Clayton's staff included in her briefing
materials a statement of the Presbyterian Church (USA)'s position on
Iraq, which calls for restraint and opposes a pre-emptive military
strike.
Clayton, a member of Cotton Memorial Presbyterian
Church in Henderson, NC, said the denomination's view was an important
factor in her decision to vote against the controversial measure on Oct.
10.
"It was certainly a part of my
deliberation," Clayton told the Presbyterian News Service by
phone a few days later. "It was part of my reflection, and I
appreciate it. I'm delighted where we are called to overcome ''evil with
good.'"
Last summer the General Assembly of the PC(USA) called
on the U.S. government to exercise restraint. Last month the General
Assembly Council endorsed "A Call to Prayer and Action,"
urging Presbyterians to oppose a precipitate U.S. attack on Iraq and
Bush's "new doctrine of pre-emptive military action."
"It was strengthening to me as a Presbyterian to
see where my church was," Clayton said. "I was reassured by
that."
Despite her vote against the authorization bill, it
was approved in the House by a vote of 296 to 133, giving Bush authority
to attack if Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein refuses to give up weapons of
mass destruction as demanded by United Nations resolutions. Hours later,
the Senate approved an identical measure, 77-23.
Of the 43 Presbyterians in the House and Senate -- 26
Republicans and 17 Democrats -- only 10 voted against the resolution.
Of the House's 33 Presbyterian members, 24 voted in
favor of the authorization bill, among them John Linder (R-GA), Carolyn
B. Maloney (D-NY) and Jim Ryun ( R-KS). Those who voted against included
John J. Duncan Jr. (R-TN), Thomas M. Reynolds (R-NY) and Lynn C. Woolsey
(D-CA).
In the Senate, nine of 10 Presbyterians -- seven
Republicans and two Democrats -- voted for the resolution, and only one
voted no: Mark Dayton (D-MN). Among those who voted for the measure were
Christopher Bond (R-MO), Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and John D. Rockefeller IV
(D-WV).
The Bush administration claims that Saddam has kept a
stockpile of chemical and biological weapons and continued his efforts
to develop nuclear weapons, in violation of U.N. resolutions.
Those who opposed the use-of-force authorization cited
a host of reasons, including doubts about Iraq's nuclear potential, fear
that military action would divert attention and resources from the war
on global terrorism, and their constituents' opposition to war.
Presbyterian Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), the ranking
Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, voted for the
resolution, saying, "I support this resolution because the threat
posed by the brutal dictatorship of Saddam Hussein is real, immediate
and growing."
He said the Iraqi leader has a deadly array of
conventional, chemical and biological weapons, and is "doing
everything in his power" to acquire nuclear arms.
"Saddam has developed the ability to deliver his
poisons and pestilence by unmanned aerial vehicles that can easily be
smuggled into the United States," said Shelby, a member of First
Presbyterian Church in Tuscaloosa, AL.
Shelby said his position regarding the resolution was
not influenced by PC(USA) policy.
A spokesperson for Presbyterian Rep. Ken Bentsen
(D-TX), who voted for the measure, said he agonized over his decision
but concluded that Congress should "speak with one voice."
"He felt that this was the appropriate course of
action, although not the best way to go," said Dominic Nguyen,
Bentsen's assistant for foreign affairs and defense issues. "He
feels that for the sake of national resolve, he should support the
president on this."
Bentsen, a member of First Presbyterian Church in
Houston, TX, has "grave concerns" about the administration's
"proclivity for unilateral action," Nguyen said, but is
hopeful that it will "pursue every diplomatic option and venue
available" before going to war.
Nguyen said he didn't know whether the congressman's
religious beliefs affected his decision.
Dayton, the only Presbyterian in the Senate to vote
against the resolution, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he had
"no illusions" about the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's
arsenal, and no doubt that an attack might one day be necessary, but had
heard nothing during a weeklong debate to "persuade him that the
Senate needed to act in advance of any specific military plan."
Here's how all the Presbyterians in Congress voted on
the measure:
U.S. House of Representatives
Yes ---- Ken Bentsen (D-TX), Shelley Moore Capito
(R-WV), Howard Coble (R-NC), Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO), Bobby R. Etheridge
(D-NC), Porter J. Goss (R-FL), Jim Greenwood (R-PA), Robin Hayes (R-NC),
Joel Hefley (R-CO), Sue W. Kelly (R-NY), Jerry Lewis (R-CA), John Linder
(R-GA), Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Mike McIntyre (D-NC), George
Nethercutt (R-WA), Earl Pomeroy (D-NC), Deborah Pryce (R-OH), Thomas M.
Reynolds (R-NY), Jim Ryun (R-KS), John M. Spratt Jr. (D-SC), Cliff
Stearns (R-FL), William M. Thornberry (R-TX), Wes Watkins (R-OK), Frank
R. Wolf (R-VA)
No ---- Eva Clayton (D-NC), Diana DeGette (D-CO), John
J. Duncan Jr. (R-TN), Nick Joe Rahall II (D-WV), Victor F. Snyder
(D-AR), Thomas C. Sawyer (D-OH), Melvin Watt (D-NC), Lynn C. Woolsey
(D-CA), David Wu (D-OR)
U.S. Senate
Yes ---- George Allen (R-VA), Christopher Bond (R-MO),
Thomas Carper (D-DE), Mike Enzi (R-WY), Bill Frist (R-TN), James M.
Inhofe (R-OK), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Richard
Shelby (R-AL)
No ---- Mark Dayton (D-MN)
