West pawlet, VT 9/20/06
(802) 645-9727
Former Army Lieutenant and a candidate for Congress in VT, Dennis Morrisseau
of W. Pawlet, today called for the arrest of President Bush and Vice President
Cheney by the American military "if necessary" to prevent an unauthorized attack
upon the nation of Iran.
"American forces are apparently already active inside Iran, and Naval forces have
received orders to deploy to that country," Morrisseau said. "The President has
NO AUTHORITY to attack the nation of Iran whatsoever, in the absence of a full,
formal Declaration of War on Iran by the sitting Congress," Morrisseau said. He
said any order for an attack upon Iran or to deploy naval forces to its coastal waters
is illegal, and called upon officers of the American military to "First, refuse to obey
such an order. If the president persists and insists on ordering our forces into combat
in or over Iran without a formal Declaration of War, then I call upon you, General Pace,
as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and upon such other military officers as clearly see
their duty in these circumstances to detain both the President and Vice President,
until such time as the Congress shall act."
Morrisseau, a Congressional candidate who was court-martialled for opposition to the
Vietnam War in 1968, said he has written to General Pace to ask for the intervention
of the military. "In spite of my opposition to the Vietnam War and the court-martial
which we ultimately defeated, I was a good soldier who had the respect of my superior
officers throughout the ordeal. And they had mine!" Morrisseau said. "There are many
many, very, very decent people in the active duty military. I know this," he said "---
people who love their country and democracy too, and hate war."
Morrisseau wrote that "Iran is no present threat to us or anyone. Their right to enrich
uranium under treaties signed by us for the production of nuclear power is clear: and that
is all they have so far done. An attack upon that nation now by us, acting alone will constitute
an illegal war of aggression under international law. It is illegal under our law as well. I urge
you to so advise the President," Morrisseau wrote to Pace, "and urge that he take no such
actions. In particular, he must not act in the absense of a full, formal, responsible War Declaration
by Congress. That is the Constitutional requirement." If he and Cheney persist, Morrisseau
wrote, "than the country must rely upon you, Sir, and our armed forces generally, to resist
all illegal orders by Bush or Cheney, and take the gentlemen into custody if necessary.
