Ahead of President Obama’s national address tonight, Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine is urging the White House to come to Congress before extending its bombing campaign against the Islamic State.
The president and most congressional leaders don’t want rank and file lawmakers to weigh in on the U-S response to the Islamic State. But when it comes to conducting more U-S airstrikes in Iraq and possibly Syria, Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine says even in the midst of campaign season, the president and lawmakers owe it to soldiers to approve or disapprove of any sustained military campaign.
“During a time of war we ask our troops to give their best even to the point of sacrificing their own lives. When compared against that, how much of a sacrifice is it for a president to engage in a possibly contentious debate with Congress about whether military action is a good idea?”
Kaine, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, says he wants to reestablish the constitutional mandate that Congress decides whether the nation goes to war or not.
“With a firm willingness to offer support to a well-crafted military mission I believe the American public and this Congress will support such a mission. It is my deepest hope that we have the opportunity to debate and vote on the mission in the halls of Congress as our framers intended and our troops deserve.”
The president is expected to ask Congress for additional funds to arm moderate rebel groups in Syria.