If They Can Lie About NSA/Snowden, They Can Lie About Syria & Iran (Bi-Partisan Reps Urge Action))
If They Can Lie About NSA/Snowden, They Can Lie About Syria & Iran
by Robert Naiman
The Obama Administration has announced that the U.S. is going to arm Syrian rebels, and is considering imposing a "no fly zone" over Syria, which means bombing Syria. The public - Democratic, Republican, and Independent - is overwhelmingly opposed. Congress has neither authorized arming Syrian rebels or imposing a no-fly zone. Under the Constitution and the War Powers Resolution, in the absence of an armed attack on the United States, Congress, not the President, has the power to authorize the use of military force.
If Clapper can lie to Congress about the NSA's domestic surveillance without consequence, what incentive does he have to hold back from lying to Congress about Syria? Or Iran? What confidence can we have about Administration statements about Syria or Iran, if there is no Congressional debate or scrutiny?
Like the Fourth Amendment, the War Powers Resolution is not going to enforce itself. If we want the War Powers Resolution to be enforced, Members of Congress have to speak up and take action. That means members of the public have to speak up and take action, because that's what gets Members of Congress to move.
A bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives has started to stand up. They've introduced legislation that would expressly prohibit the Obama Administration intervening militarily in Syria's sectarian civil war without explicit Congressional authorization.
Reps. Peter Welch (D-VT), Chris Gibson (R-NY), Rick Nolan (D-MN), and Walter Jones (R-NC) have introduced bipartisan legislation (H.R. 2494) to block U.S. military intervention in Syria without an affirmative vote of Congress. Identical legislation (S. 1201) has been introduced in the Senate by Sens. Tom Udall (D-NM), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Rand Paul (R-KY) and Mike Lee (R-UT).
Sending military assistance to Syrian rebels, or any direct military intervention, would lead to Americanization of Syria's sectarian civil war. Congress and the American people should be part of a vigorous debate before any such military escalation takes place. Urge your Senators and Representative to support legislation that would require Congressional authorization before any military escalation in Syria.
More at:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2013/07/03-6
Robert Naiman is Policy Director at Just Foreign Policy. Naiman has worked as a policy analyst and researcher at the Center for Economic and Policy Research and Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch. He has masters degrees in economics and mathematics from the University of Illinois and has studied and worked in the Middle East.
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worked in Afghanistan, Iraq a d Libya! YAY! Democracy! FREEDOMS!!! WOO HOO!!!
until it's parsed so that it's acceptable..to whichever constituency is the Flavor of the Month? 
