Pentagon officials claimed President Obama and future presidents have the power to send troops anywhere in the world to fight groups linked to al-Qaeda, based in part on the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), passed by Congress days after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

Speaking at the first Senate hearing on rewriting the AUMF, Pentagon officials specifically said troops could be sent to Syria, Yemen and the Congo without new congressional authorization.In a hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Forces entitled Oversight: The Law of Armed Conflict, the Use of Military Force, and the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, Pentagon officials argued that the wide-ranging counter-terrorism laws implemented after 9/11 will continue to be the law of the land until “hostilities with al-Qaeda,” or any individuals potentially associated with the group, come to an end.

Michael Sheehan, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, predicted the war against al-Qaeda would last at least 10 to 20 more years. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) challenged the Pentagon’s interpretation of the Constitution and that the entire world is a battlefield.

Translation =*(look we can’t end the “War on Terror” too fast, we need a threat to continue Funneling money into the international Arms/Drugs trade. So we can continue to justify our budgets, and run this criminal enterprise. We NEED to keep you scared, so we can easily continue to implement our program of Militarist Corporate Fascism, We can’t have you experiencing any real freedom, that would just be silly.)

Via Zen Haven