Posted on 04/06/2017 9:43:53 PM PDT by Colonel Kangaroo
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) asserted Thursday night that President Trump needs congressional authorization for military action in Syria after Trump ordered an airstrike in the country following a deadly chemical attack earlier this week.
"While we all condemn the atrocities in Syria, the United States was not attacked," Paul said in a statement shortly after reports that the U.S. had launched more than 50 Tomahawk cruise missiles against an airfield in Syria.
"The President needs congressional authorization for military action as required by the Constitution, and I call on him to come to Congress for a proper debate," Paul said. "Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer, and Syria will be no different."
Paul expressed similar sentiments earlier Thursday amid reports that the Trump administration was considering a strike. Earlier this week, President Bashar Assad's forces reportedly used chemical weapons against opponents in Syria's years-long civil war.
A number of Democrats on Thursday night also urged caution after the Trump administration struck at an airfield near the city of Homs, where it said a gas attack originated earlier this week.
Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) sided with Paul on Twitter, saying that Trump "can use military force in defense of US. But attacking #Assad regime requires congressional approval."
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) also called the strike "an act of war" on Twitter, saying that "Congress needs to come back into session & hold a debate. Anything less is an abdication of our responsibility."
He surly does not.
Poof went the DNC meme that Trump will do Putins bidding.
Not under The War Powers Act.
He has 48 hours...
The Constitution is the supreme law of the land, not the War Powers Act.
Haven’t we already been bombing in Syria, though?
It's going to have to wait until after the recess.
Just when you think Rand will be o.k., he returns to being a “$hit disturber!”
Give it a rest Capt. Kangaroo. Trump does not need congressional approval to send a few tomahawk missiles into Syria. Declaring War is a much different act than what Trump did. If you paid attention to Trump’s statement he specifically said it was to defend the national interests of the country, which is enough to do what he did in authorizing military force. Thats why he has White House counsel and not you.
And besides, Rand is a dope. He just spent a weekend golfing with Trump and singing his praises on healthcare, and yet he has to antagonize the President with a stupid statement like this.
Really? Tell the people of Kosovo, Libya, Yemen, Somalia, Nicaragua, etc...
“Haven’t we already been bombing in Syria, though?”
==
There’s already a US military presence there.
“U.S. Is Sending 400 More Troops to Syria”
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/09/world/middleeast/us-troops-syria.html
I suspect they’re not there on vacation.
Simple. LeMay would bomb em back into the stone age.
If a few Tomahawk missles sent into Syria isn’t an act of war against Syria then I guess we should not consider it an act of war if Assad decides to blow up a few bombs in New York City. The arrogant warmongerers of Washington DC always seem surprised and outraged when one of the victims of our “non-war” actions decides to hit back. If we cant get our Beltway bloodshedders under control, one day one of our victims is liable to hit back in a very big way.
Rand is right but congress gave up that authority with Obama and Libya when Obama ignored the war powers act and congress did nothing.
Under the War Powers Resolution as CinC, he has 48 hours to notify Congress, which Trump did do, and Trump can do 60 days of military action without congressional approval, and another 30 days to withdrawal.
Thank you Rand “Captain Constitution” Paul. We all know you want to feel important.
Only the Congress can declare war; however, MILITARY ACTIONS are something else again! It says so in the Constitution!
In recent history, the president went off on his own in North Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan ( several different times and ways ) and if you want me to go back, farther in American history, I can, but suggest that anyone who disagrees with me, simply look it all up!
Pssssssssssssst.....I'll save you the trouble; it says no such thing!
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