Political Quotes

“Madam President, today I have come to the floor to speak very briefly about a resolution that the majority leader introduced, I believe, yesterday. This is an authorization for military force that apparently purports to give the President legal authority to conduct military operations against ISIS. Before we break for the weekend, I thought it was important to come to the floor to explain very briefly to my colleagues what this resolution really is. This resolution is a total rewrite of the war powers clause of the U.S. Constitution. Let's be clear about that. It is essentially a declaration of international martial law, a sweeping transfer of military power to the President that will allow him or her to send U.S. troops almost anywhere in the world for almost any reason with absolutely no limitations. Article I, section 8, clause 11 of the Constitution vests in Congress the responsibility to declare war. Many of us on both sides of the aisle have been arguing for over a year that the President--right now-- has exceeded his constitutional authority in continuing military operations against ISIS without specific authorization from Congress. I have been amongst those who have been calling on this body to debate authorization of military force.…”