Lee Zeldin: “I completely support Congress' solemn duty under Article I of the Constitution to authorize the commitment of U.S.…”

“I completely support Congress' solemn duty under Article I of the Constitution to authorize the commitment of U.S. troops to foreign hostilities; but that is not the only issue here. This amendment attempts to block intelligence sharing to our strategic partners such as Saudi Arabia at a time when those partners have civilian targets that are actively being attacked by Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Intelligence sharing can help our partners protect their forces and their civilians. It can also help them ensure that they are hitting their correct targets, thereby minimizing civilian casualties. Additionally, the Iran-backed Houthis are stepping up its attacks on U.S. assets in Yemen. CENTCOM confirmed that the Houthis shot down a U.S. drone earlier this summer. If we cut off intelligence sharing with our strategic partners, it will certainly have repercussions that diminish our abilities to protect our own assets. There is reason that a bipartisan majority supported exempting intelligence sharing from the War Powers Resolution on Yemen that we considered earlier this year. It is because this type of cooperation is essential to U.S. interests in the region, including ensuring responsible conduct of the war in Yemen. It is important to point out that here, in this case with Yemen, the Houthis overthrew a government with the backing of Iran. Iran is the world's largest state sponsor of terror. They do many malign, nonnuclear, nefarious activities.…”