Record to publish the names of all Americans who had died in the Vietnam War, which then numbered over 31,000. Soon after, Quaker peace groups and other anti-war activists began reading those names aloud on the steps of the U.S. Capitol and at protests and vigils across the country. Findley also co-authored the War Powers Act of 1973 which was passed by the House and Senate over President Nixon's veto. The measure was intended to prevent a president from committing the United States to war without the consent of Congress. According to The New York Times, in 1982 Findley narrowly lost his bid for re-election for a number of reasons: "a competent opponent, redistricting, the economic recession, and pro-Israel groups support to his challenger," which allowed Findley's challenger to match him in spending. During the campaign, "a former AIPAC [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] president called him 'a dangerous enemy of Israel.'" Findley confirmed that his 1982 campaign raised "almost exactly the same sum" as that of his opponent. Following his defeat, he served on the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD) from 1983 to 1994. In 1989 Findley, with former representative Pete McCloskey (R-CA), formed the Council for the National Interest. It is a 501 (c)4 non-profit, non-partisan organization in the United States that works for "Middle East policies that serve the American national interest." Its first executive director was ten-term congressman John B. Anderson (R-Il) who ran as an Independent candidate in the 1980 U.S. presidential election. Political views A year after the September 11 attacks in 2001, Findley published an article saying that this attack would never have occurred were it not for the United States' uncritical support of Israel. Findley claimed that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched primarily to benefit Israel, at the behest of the Israel lobby in the United States. Findley was a frequent critic of U.S. foreign policy regarding Israel. Findley was the author of They Dare to Speak Out: People and Institutions Confront Israel's Lobby in which he stated that the pro-Israel lobby, notably AIPAC, has undue influence over the United States Congress. He referred to the lobby as "the 700-pound gorilla in Washington". A review of the book in The Washington Post stated: "Stripped of all the maudlin martyrdom, former congressman Paul Findley's message is straightforward and valid: Israeli influence in the United States, including in the