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Show Your Man jk In Washington!!! By U.S. Senator Orrin G. Hatch WILL CARTER BREAK TAIWAN TREATY? JUDGE SAYS NO Last December, America was treated to an unexpected and dubious Christmas present - the diplomatic recognition of Red China and the simultaneous abandonment of our longtime allies, the Nationalist Chinese on Taiwan. As the ranking leader on the Constitution subcommittee, subcom-mittee, I spoke out against the President's Presi-dent's unconstitutional breaking of a treaty. Many Americans were shocked and angered by the administration's action. It wasn't just that Mr. Carter was choosing to bestow U.S. diplomatic favor on one of the most repressive regimes on earth. Most of us recognize that we cannot long afford af-ford to ignore a government with power over 800 million humans. But in his ill-advised action, the Chief Executive Ex-ecutive was unilaterally and unconstitutionally un-constitutionally breaking a Mutual Defense Treaty solemnly ratified between be-tween the people of America and the free Chinese and approved by the United States Senate. Mr. Carter took this action while proclaming that the Senate was "not a party" to the very treaty he was abrogating. A Question Of Law Is it the President's right to break treaties without first seeking the Senate's advice and consent, as required by the Constitution? This was the question that 23 of my colleagues col-leagues and I raised in our suit to stop the President and to uphold the Constitution. I was proud to join with these men in seeking to check this blatant act of presidential arrogrance and to defend our friendship with the free Chinese. Countless Utahns wrote, phoned and wired their protests of the Carter move. For me, there was no other possible course than to back our Asian friends to the fullest and to seek a vindication of the Senate's constitutional powers. Court Stands Up Last week, federal Judge Oliver Gasch delivered an historic decision in response to our suit. He ruled that President Carter acted unconstitutionally unconstitu-tionally in abrogating the power of the Congress in not allowing the Senate its full power of advice and consent regarding the 1954 Mutual Defense Treaty with the Nationalist Chinese. The White House, not surprisingly, surpris-ingly, promised to appeal Gasch's decision to the most liberal court in America, the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. I wonder whether the highest of courts, the American people, will speak in this issue. Most Americans can only wonder how, with our nation's reputation sagging worldwide, one man's misguided turning away from our close ally could ever help restore our tarnished integrity. The Gasch decision upholds the Constitution's requirement that all treaties between America and foreign nations are the business of the president and the Senate. It also determines that this particular president, presi-dent, in his unseemly haste to extend diplomatic recognition to Red China, had no authority to tear up this country's coun-try's long-standing commitment to the Nationalist Chinese without the consent of the Senate. As ranking Republican on the Constitution subcommittee of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I support sup-port the Gasch decision because it is my firm belief that we must uphold the Constitution and make it clear to Mr. Carter that he too must obey the law. |