Political Quotes

“Let me thank my colleague for yielding. In March, when the President committed our troops to NATO's mission in Libya, I said that he had a responsibility to the American people to define the mission, to explain what America's role was in achieving that mission and lay out how it was to be accomplished. He has not effectively done so. The American people and the Members of this House have questions and concerns that have gone unanswered. The President of the United States is our Commander in Chief, and I have always believed combat decisions should be left to the Commander in Chief and to the generals on the ground. But the House also has an obligation to heed the concerns of our constituents and to carry out our constitutional responsibilities. The resolution I have put forward expresses the will of the people in a responsible way that reflects our commitments to our troops and to our allies. Let me lay out exactly what this resolution does. First, it establishes that the President has not asked for and that the Congress has not granted authorization for the introduction or continued involvement of our troops in Libya. Second, it reasserts Congress' constitutional role to fund our troops. Third, it requires the President to provide, within 14 days, information on that mission that should have been provided from the start. And, lastly, it reaffirms the vote that we took last week that says that there should be no troops on the ground in Libya.…”