Sheila Jackson Lee: “I thank the gentlelady. Mr. Speaker, I stand here this morning as someone who has opposed the Iraq war and consistently…”

“I thank the gentlelady. Mr. Speaker, I stand here this morning as someone who has opposed the Iraq war and consistently opposed the Afghanistan war under both Republican and Democratic Presidents. I think it is important to stop the politics this morning and recognize that mistakes were made by Presidents of all political parties. The War Powers Resolution that is now being debated as being unconstitutional by my Republican friends has a very strong purpose. It is the purpose of this joint resolution to fulfill the intent of the Framers of the Constitution of the United States and ensure that the collective judgment of both the Congress and the President will apply to the introduction of United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly going to occur. Now we have Republicans suggesting that the War Powers Resolution is unconstitutional. What do they want? This is a political game. I voted for Mr. Kucinich's resolution, and the Republicans had the opportunity to also vote for Mr. Kucinich's resolution. This is to embarrass the President. I agree with the underlying sentiment that this was handled badly and that there should have been consultation. Now there is an opportunity for authorization. We need to debate this not whether it is President Obama but whether or not there is a collaborative effort between NATO and the Arab League to address this hostile situation in Libya.…”