The Senate approved Thursday the House-passed resolution authorizing the arming and training of Syrian rebels in language tucked in to a short-term funding bill to keep the federal government open. Both the authorization and the funding sunset on Dec. 11, ensuring that Congress will revisit both issues when lawmakers return for a lame-duck session.
The measure now heads to President Obama's desk for his signature. He has lauded congressional action as a key step toward his stated goal of dismantling the Islamic State militant group, also known as ISIS or ISIL.
The measure enjoyed support from both parties. Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., said the bipartisan vote would send a message to the world. "What an important statement that will be to the very countries that we are seeking to help rid themselves of this cancer," he said.
Some of Obama's most vocal Republican foreign policy foes, including Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, supported the resolution. "To my colleagues who worry about the people we trained with the arms falling into wrong hands, I would say there's nothing we can do in this area without some risk," Graham said.
Resistance among Democrats in conservative-leaning states was notable. Sens. Mark Begich of Alaska, Jon Tester of Montana and Joe Manchin of West Virginia all opposed the measure. Tester cited a shared concern that while the immediate bill required no new war funding, it is unlikely that will continue to be the case.
"You can say this bill contains no specific dollar amount, but that is what this administration is going to spend and that is just a start," Tester said. "Will our grandchildren once again have to pay for our choices today?"
Among the chamber's potential 2016 GOP presidential candidates, Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Sen. Ted Cruz opposed it; Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida supported it. "Intervention when both choices are bad is a mistake. Intervention when both sides are evil is a mistake. Intervention that destabilizes the Middle East is a mistake," said Paul.
The measure passed Wednesday in the House with broad support, 273-156, with more Republicans than Democrats backing the plan. Lawmakers in the president's party have been more reluctant to support further military engagement in the Middle East.
Congress is all but certain to revisit the debate after the elections. Many lawmakers contend that Congress should hold a separate vote to authorize any additional military efforts to combat ISIL, particularly any military engagement in Syria. Others want to ensure that no additional U.S. combat troops will be deployed. The Obama administration has so far maintained that it has the legal authority to carry out its strategy to dismantle ISIL, and the president has not indicated that he would seek any further legal authorization from Congress.
The stopgap funding bill also includes a short-term renewal for the Export-Import Bank until next June. Congressional Republicans are divided over whether the bank should continue or be allowed to expire. It also includes $88 million in funds requested by the Obama administration to combat the Ebola outbreak in Africa.
House and Senate appropriators are working to produce an "omnibus" spending bill, which would include all 12 unfinished spending bills in one behemoth $1.014 trillion package. Congress would return after the November elections and approve that bill before the new Congress begins in January.
No comments:
Post a Comment