Among the many questions the Obama administration has been unable or unwilling to answer regarding its plans for military strikes in Syria is what happens if Congress refuses to authorize the use of force. It’s a question that should be answered before, not after, a vote occurs in Congress, because it will clarify whether lawmakers are now engaged in the binding decision-making process required by the Constitution, or whether they are merely being used to lend an air of domestic legitimacy to military action that would violate international law.
Among the many questions the Obama administration has been unable or unwilling to answer regarding its plans for military strikes in Syria is what happens if Congress refuses to authorize the use of force.
It’s a question that should be answered before, not after, a vote occurs in Congress, because it will clarify whether lawmakers are now engaged in the binding decision-making process required by the Constitution, or whether they are merely being used to lend an air of domestic legitimacy to military action that would violate international law.
Even as he beseeches former colleagues in Congress to vote for President Barack Obama’s plan to bomb Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry made it clear in an interview with The Huffington Post that he thinks the president has the right to order air strikes in the face of congressional disapproval. If that scenario were to materialize -- a bombing campaign after a "no" vote -- the result would almost certainly be an impeachment drive in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Even as he beseeches former colleagues in Congress to vote for President Barack Obama’s plan to bomb Syria, Secretary of State John Kerry made it clear in an interview with The Huffington Post that he thinks the president has the right to order air strikes in the face of congressional disapproval.
If that scenario were to materialize -- a bombing campaign after a "no" vote -- the result would almost certainly be an impeachment drive in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.
Syrian government forces may have carried out a chemical weapons attack close to Damascus without the personal permission of President Bashar al-Assad, Germany's Bild am Sonntag paper reported on Sunday, citing German intelligence. Syrian brigade and division commanders had been asking the Presidential Palace to allow them to use chemical weapons for the last four-and-a-half months, according to radio messages intercepted by German spies, but permission had always been denied, the paper said.
Syrian government forces may have carried out a chemical weapons attack close to Damascus without the personal permission of President Bashar al-Assad, Germany's Bild am Sonntag paper reported on Sunday, citing German intelligence.
Syrian brigade and division commanders had been asking the Presidential Palace to allow them to use chemical weapons for the last four-and-a-half months, according to radio messages intercepted by German spies, but permission had always been denied, the paper said.
Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that Saudi Arabia had agreed to support military intervention in Syria. At a news conference on the sidebar of a meeting with Arab League foreign ministers, Mr. Kerry noted that he had received Saudi assurances of support for what he called “the strike.” Qatar’s foreign minister, Khalid Al Attiya, who joined Mr. Kerry at the news conference, stopped short of explicitly endorsing a military strike but said that his nation would back foreign intervention.
Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that Saudi Arabia had agreed to support military intervention in Syria.
At a news conference on the sidebar of a meeting with Arab League foreign ministers, Mr. Kerry noted that he had received Saudi assurances of support for what he called “the strike.”
Qatar’s foreign minister, Khalid Al Attiya, who joined Mr. Kerry at the news conference, stopped short of explicitly endorsing a military strike but said that his nation would back foreign intervention.
The City Council voted 8-3 Thursday to approve adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of classes protected from discrimination in San Antonio. Council chambers erupted with emotion — red-clad supporters of the updated nondiscrimination ordinance applauded and offered a standing ovation, while blue-shirted opponents sat silently. People from both factions quickly began exiting chambers.
The City Council voted 8-3 Thursday to approve adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the list of classes protected from discrimination in San Antonio.
Council chambers erupted with emotion — red-clad supporters of the updated nondiscrimination ordinance applauded and offered a standing ovation, while blue-shirted opponents sat silently. People from both factions quickly began exiting chambers.