On the recordJuly 24, 2013
I would only say to my colleague, through the Chair, that this institution has proved that unless we have a deadline, we simply refuse to act. What the President has said in terms of any new authorization for use of force--and it's something I agree wholeheartedly with the White House--is that he won't support a new authorization that is broader than the one that we seek to sunset. That, I think, is a problem with some of the drafts which the majority has proposed. We don't want an expanded war. We do want an authorization that reflects the precise nature of the threat, and that threat has changed since 9/11. It no longer comes as much from the core of al Qaeda, which has been decimated; rather, it comes now from a group of franchises, loosely affiliated organizations that sometimes, as a product of convenience, will associate with al Qaeda for financing or legitimacy. But it is now a far-flung terrorist challenge, and any authorization ought to reflect the changing nature of threat. With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
