Congress micromanaging its way out of accepting responsibility

Rand Paul was on Hannity last night.

He makes a point I completely agree with, that Congress should not, by way of authorization, try to micromanage any military action against or regarding Syria.  Either authorize the President to use force as necessary with regard to the use of chemical weapons in, to or from Syria, or don’t.

I made this point the other day, Authorize the Use of Force:

Congress is not asked to approve a “plan” or a “strategy” or how many missiles get fired, if at all, at what time of day and on what targets.  I don’t understand — militarily or politically — why some people want to take on that burden….Whether, when and how to use force with regard to Syria, and the success or not, then will and should be on the President, and the President alone as Commander-in-Chief.

The micromanaging is portrayed as an attempt to accept responsibility for the authorization, but in fact it’s an attempt to evade responsibility.  It’s an attempt to provide a political way out if things go poorly,  so Congress can say “well, we didn’t authorize that.”

Here’s his point, at the 5:15 mark:

Sen. Paul told Sean Hannity that he doesn’t believe there’s a good outcome if the U.S. bombs Syria. Furthermore, he said there is no clear friend for the U.S. within the rebels.He criticized the resolution put forth by the Congress because it restricts the power of the president to execute the war. “So while I think the president is limited on initiating the war, I think the president has most, if not all, of the power on how to execute the war.”

Tags: Constitution, Rand Paul, Sean Hannity, Syria

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