On the recordFebruary 13, 2020
I rise in opposition to the amendment and will be making a motion to table it following Senator Cotton's presentation. The Cotton amendment would establish a very dangerous precedent. I say that with all respect. It would basically allow military action against actors on the designated list of foreign terrorist organizations without there being a declaration of war against them. There are currently 69 FTOs on the list, including the Basque Fatherland and Liberty, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the Irish Republican Army, and the Communist Party of the Philippines. The FTO list has never been a war authorization. The FTO list is created by the administration. It adds the names to it. This would suggest that, by being on the FTO, the U.S. military could take action against you even without there being congressional authorization. The list is so long, and it can be added to by a President. This would basically destroy the underlying bill by allowing a President to add to the FTO list rather than coming to Congress and then taking military action. I know the speaker's intention is that this goes to the IRGC. If we need to defend ourselves under article II, we can or we can declare war. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.
