House Republicans mull a new war authorization against ISIS
Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, has directed members of his conference to discuss a possible new war authorization against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
On Thursday, Rep. Ed Royce, R-California, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, will begin to hold formal listening sessions with members of his panel to gauge their support.
"The majority leader and Chairman Royce is beginning their process of gathering ideas and [having] listening sessions," Ryan said at his weekly press conference Thursday.
The sessions, he added, will focus on "whether and how we can have an AUMF on ISIS."
Ryan, who last year said he believed President Obama already has the proper authority to carry out military operations, opened up to the idea of a new proposal last month. He told reporters that he thought it would be a good symbol of American resolve to have a new authorization for the use of military force (AUMF) against ISIS, but he also didn't want Congress to "handcuff the next president."
"[I]f we can get an AUMF done that ensures our commanders have the flexibility they need to defeat ISIS, I want to move it. But ultimately, it is going to be up to President Obama to lead. Containment has failed," said Royce, who also acknowledged that the administration already has authority.
While the listening sessions are initially meant for committee members, an aide said listening sessions with the rest of the GOP conference are a likely next step.
Since Ryan took the gavel in October, lawmakers have pleaded with the new speaker to consider a new AUMF. In early November, for example, a group of 35 lawmakers made up of Freedom Caucus members and Democrats wary of another Iraq war told Ryan it's "past time" for Congress to fulfill its Constitutional duty and vote on a new authorization.
President Obama has said the 2001 authorization Congress passed after the 9/11 attacks covers current military operations against ISIS. Still, the White House sent Congress a new war authorization proposal in February.
But in the wake of the Paris attacks in November and the San Bernardino shooting a month later, lawmakers are revisiting a new authorization, although it could be incredibly challenging for Congress to pass.
Since U.S. airstrikes against ISIS began in August 2014, the idea of a new AUMF has met with mixed response. On one hand, there are lawmakers who want a very narrow authorization to avoid another Iraq war, but others opposed it because it would tie the president's hands. Other lawmakers are pushing for a very broad war authorization.
The broadest proposal comes from the Senate, where Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina introduced an AUMF that would have no expiration date, no geographic bounds and no limit on the scope of U.S. ground troops.