Again Kerry is for Iraq before he is against Iraq.
Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday that the Senate should not “bind the hands” of the president with a new war authorization that bars ground troops.
Kerry delivered the message to lawmakers as part of the Obama administration’s first detailed request for legislation setting the scope of military force used against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. He also asked that lawmakers allow targeting groups “associated” with the extremists and not limit operations geographically to those two countries.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is weighing a war authorization after months of U.S. airstrikes, and amid growing concerns that lawmakers are obligated to take a stronger stand on the future of operations. The committee will on Thursday debate a bill that limits the war to three years and bars the use of ground forces.
Kerry told the committee that President Barack Obama is open to language in an authorization that clarifies how combat forces may be used and still does not plan to deploy ground troops.
“It does not mean we should pre-emptively bind the hands of the commander-in-chief or our commanders in the field in responding to scenarios and contingencies that are impossible to foresee,” Kerry said.[…]
The legislation may be voted out of the Senate committee later in the week but will almost certainly not pass into law before Congress ends its session in the coming days.
An authorization could be taken up again in January when it will be subject to more GOP influence. The party takes majority control in both the House and Senate and some Republicans have called for an increase role for the military.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said he opposes the bill because it attempts to “micromanage” military tactics and “telegraphs” the U.S. strategy to the Islamic State.
“I think it takes a lot of the advantage away from our engagement,” Rubio said.