Democratic lawmakers and members of the press criticized President Trump Thursday for what they said was a military action against Syria without approval from Congress.
Trump reportedly ordered the firing of dozens of Tomahawk missiles at a Syrian airfield Thursday evening, in retaliation for the chemical attacks Syria used against his own citizens this week.
While Trump hinted at some kind of reaction, many Democrats said immediately that Trump has no permission from Congress.
“If true, this is unconstitutional,” Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., wrote on Twitter.
If true, this is UNCONSTITUTIONAL. Congress never authorized @POTUS to engage in war on #Assad in #Syria. https://t.co/Q39BSgaFYq
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) April 7, 2017
Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, agreed that “any use of force needs congressional approval.” He also said responding in a joint effort with U.S. allies would be a better move.
Despite the complaints, however, President Obama justified limited strikes in Libya in 2011 without congressional approval, and justified them on national security grounds. President Trump released a brief statement on the strikes at about 10 p.m., and argued that the strike was needed to serve a “very vital national security interest.”
Still, Democrats argued that wasn’t enough. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., said the attack was an “act of war” that needs congressional approval.
“Congress needs to come back into session & hold a debate,” she tweeted. “Anything less is an abdication of our responsibility.”
This is an act of war. Congress needs to come back into session & hold a debate. Anything less is an abdication of our responsibility. https://t.co/GvHML3ByeI
— Rep. Barbara Lee (@RepBarbaraLee) April 7, 2017
The House, however, left for a two-week Easter recess, and the Senate was expected to leave for the break early Friday afternoon.
Just before news of the attack came out, Hillary Clinton indicated she supported the substance of the move that Trump made, but was silent on the question of congressional approval.
“Assad has an air force, and that air force is the cause of most of these civilian deaths as we have seen over the years and as we saw again in the last few days,” Clinton said during a speech at the Women in the World summit in New York City on Thursday evening.
But Trump’s opponents in the press also complained about the lack of congressional approval, and some noted that Trump himself argued years ago that President Obama needed Congress to approve these actions.
“Did I miss this vote?” commentator Ron Fournier tweeted.
Trump’s tweet from 2013 saying “the president must get congressional approval before attacking Syria — big mistake if he does not!”
