The House on Tuesday voted by a narrow margin to advance government funding legislation that includes a provision to authorize President Obama to equip and train Syrians to fight against Islamic terrorists.
Lawmakers voted 221-192 to pass the legislative rule and begin debating the measure, which is expected to take up the remainder of Tuesday and part of Wednesday.
Sizable coalitions of both Republicans and Democrats oppose the Syrian provision, but it is expected to win the 218 votes needed for final passage thanks to a bipartisan coalition of support that includes Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Tuesday’s debate centered on criticism of the president’s plan and whether Congress should be voting on a much broader authorization of the president’s use of military action in Iraq and Syria.
Targeted bombing has already begun in Iraq and has expanded within the country, angering some Democrats and Republicans who believe it exceeds congressional authority granted at the start of the Iraq War in 2002.
But supporters of the provision requested by the president said the authorization to arm and train the Syrians, while limited, is needed to help eliminate the growing threat of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, which is destabilizing the Middle East.
Lawmakers are also willing to approve the provision because it does not involve an increase of American troops, although about 1,000 military troops are already stationed in the area and serving in advisory roles.
Members of the Islamic State have beheaded two Americans and a British citizen, and polls show Americans want the U.S. to take military action against the group but without U.S. ground forces.
“In war, we are not Republican or Democrat, but Americans first, and our commander in chief has asked for our support in this legislation,” Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., argued during debate on the measure. “And he should get it.”
The provision is attached to must-pass legislation that will prevent a government shutdown. Funding runs out at the end of the fiscal year, Sept. 30. The House bill keeps spending at current levels, under an annual cap of $1.012 trillion, until Dec. 11.
Lawmakers will vote on the Syria resolution as an amendment to the funding bill.
Both are expected to pass, despite the criticism and fear among lawmakers who are averse to voting on U.S. military involvement in the Middle East so close to the November election.
Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said the House should instead be voting on whether to grant broader authorization to the president that includes bombing Syria and Iraq.
McGovern pointed out during floor debate that the House this summer passed legislation by a vote of 370-40 that would require Obama to seek authorization from Congress for sustained U.S. combat forces in Iraq.
“If that doesn’t qualify as sustained combat,” McGovern said, referring to the latest bombing missions, “I don’t know what does.”
Many Democrats and Republicans, however, appeared resigned to pass the resolution because it at least begins to tackle the ISIS threat.
“While it does seem the president has chosen a bad option,” Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., who is retiring, said, “it’s the best of all alternatives.”
