ABSTRACT
On September 12, 2001, President George W. Bush declared a global war on terror. 1 This was stirring rhetoric at a moment of crisis. It was not, however, a correct statement as a matter of law. In the weeks and months that followed, it became clear why the administration spoke of a global war. International law permits certain actions during war that are criminal in peacetime. The administration wanted those privileges and so it made a false claim of global war. This false claim was the first step in what turned out to be a series of international law violations, violations that have denied basic human rights to thousands of individuals and have cost the United States dearly — by several measures. This chapter examines the high cost of America’s post-September 11 international law violations. It first recounts a number of serious violations; it then considers what may have motivated administration officials to violate the law, and, finally, it looks at what those violations have apparently cost the United States.
