“Since
the
enactment
of the
War
Powers
Act in
the
1970s,
which I
supported
then and
support
now,
Congress
has been
reluctant
to
assert
its
authority
when
Presidents
see fit
to send
American
military
personnel
into
harm’s
way—Korea,
Vietnam,
Lebanon,
Grenada,
and
Panama.
The
essence
of the
War
Powers
act is
that any
President
must
seek the
approval
of the
people,
in this
case
through
their
representatives
in the
Congress,
for such
action.
I
believe
the
American
people
would
decide
in favor
of
stopping
innocent
people
from
being
killed
or
wounded
by the
forces
aligned
with
Gaddafi.
However,
the
integrity
of the
United
States
government
before
the
world,
and
before
its own
people,
insists
on
Congress
stepping
up to
assume
its
responsibility.
We just
passed
the
eighth
anniversary
of the
invasion
of Iraq,
which we
went
into
thinking
that
there
were
weapons
of mass
destruction
and that
our
troops
would be
“greeted
as
liberators.”
Eight
years
later,
we know
that
liberating
Iraq was
not “a
cakewalk.”
It is
the
responsibility
of
Congress
to
consider
our
President’s
decision
before
involving
ourselves
in any
military
conflict.
If we
don’t
assert
our
constitutional
authority
in
something
as
serious
as war,
we are
slowly
undermining
our
democratic
principles.
There is
no
question
that in
my mind
President
Obama is
the
greatest
president
of my
lifetime.
I am
confident
that the
President
cares
for the
safety
of our
brave
men and
women
placing
in
harm’s
way. I
just
reintroduced
the
universal
national
service
bill,
including
a
military
draft,
so the
American
people,
through
their
representatives
in
Congress,
understand
the
costs
and
obligation
this
nation
is
undertaking
when it
engages
in
something
as
serious
as war.
It is
the
continuing
expenses
of those
endless
military
actions
in Iraq
and
Afghanistan
that
continue
to
hamstring
our
efforts
to dig
us out
of the
economic
hole the
last
administration
left us
in.
Presently,
we are
now
engaged
in a
budget
process
that
closes
senior
citizen
centers,
undermines
our
investments
in
education
and
health
care.
I plan
to work
with
President
Obama
and my
colleagues
to
address
concerns
at home
on
innovation,
jobs,
education
and
health
care,
and not
merely
providing
a tax
cut for
the
wealthy.
Congress
should
be
called
into
session
immediately.
This
could be
the
beginning
of
another
Korea or
Iraq. We
went
into
these
conflicts
without
knowing
how long
they
would
last.
War in
Korea
still
has not
ended
and we
have
just
entered
the
ninth
year in
Iraq.
This has
to stop
sometime.
It is up
to the
U.S.
Congress
to
fulfill
its
constitutional
authority.”
