Political Quotes

“earlier today, we voted on an amendment to S.J. Res. 68 that was offered by the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Risch. That amendment consisted of one sentence, as follows: ``The President has a constitutional responsibility to take actions to defend the United States, its territories, possessions, citizens, servicemembers and diplomats from attack.'' On its face, the Risch amendment seems reasonable. The President does have a responsibility to defend the country. But, as is so often the case, the devil is in the details, or the absence of details, and when it involves engaging U.S. Armed Forces in hostilities, we should pay particularly close attention. I was among those who opposed the amendment and I want to explain why. First, it is important to note that the underlying resolution already states that ``[nothing] in this section shall be construed to prevent the United States from defending itself from imminent attack.'' So there is no question about the President's authority to defend the country. But the central purpose of the resolution is to give meaning to the Congress's constitutional authority--the Congress's sole power-- to declare war. For far too long this body has surrendered that duty to the executive branch. In 2002, when the Senate considered whether or not to authorize President George W.…”