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November 05, 2014

Washington Post: Obama to seek new authorization for fight against Islamic State

Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post reports on President Obama's request for Congress to authroize combat against the Islamic State:

President Obama said Wednesday that he will ask Congress for new authority to combat the Islamic State, replacing the administration’s reliance on laws passed more than a decade ago to justify its current military operations against the militants in Syria and Iraq.

“The idea is to right-size and update whatever authorization Congress provides to suit the current fight rather than previous fights,” the president said at a White House news conference.

Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.), who has proposed new AUMF legislation in the House, met with White House counsel W. Neil Eggleston early last month on the issue. On Wednesday, Schiff called on Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) to schedule a debate and vote on a new authorization during the lame-duck session of the current Congress.

Schiff’s proposed bill provided for an 18-month authorization for continued airstrikes and limited special operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

“Whether it, or some other form of authorization, is ultimately taken up,” Schiff said in a letter to Boehner, “the most important thing is for us to do our duty to American people and the Constitution.”

To read the full article, please click here.


By:  Karen DeYoung
Source: Washington Post