Q: I guess the question I’m raising is, does this particular law really affect the President’s war-making abilities…
A: Yes, certainly.
Q: What is your authority for that?
A: Because this is an option that the President might use in war.
Q: What about ordering a village of resistants to be massacred? … Is that a power that the President could legally–
A: Yeah. Although, let me say this. So, certainly that would fall within the Commander-in-Chief’s power over tactical decisions.
Q: To order a village of civilians to be [exterminated]?
A: Sure.
—John Yoo in an interview with a Justice Department ethics attorney, from p. 64 of the OPR Report
