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House Democrats want Barack Obama to seek Congressional approval for air strikes on Libya

March 19, 2011
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  The United Nations has given Barack Obama–as well as the rest of the allied coalition–permission to begin military actions against Muammar  Gaddafi and the civil war taking place in Libya and earlier today the United States began the bombing of Libya. When it was learned that the United Nations approved military action against Libya I wrote a post titled “The United Nations has authorized military strikes on Libya, but has the United States Congress?” Of course this was a rhetorical question because the answer is well known to everybody.

  Before I go any farther with this post let me state that in no way do I have a problem with the removal of this dictator from power, in fact it is long overdue and we should have taken him out years ago. Having said that, I have a problem with the fact that the United States has apparently become subservient to the will of the United Nations. America’s Nero sat around for five weeks waiting for the United Nations to make a decision on this issue because he was not willing to make one himself. The United Nations told the United States that it was time to do something about Gaddafi and Barack Obama followed along.

  While it is true that the president of the United States does actually have to ask for permission to go to war he does not have to wait for permission from the United Nations, but rather from the Congress of the United States. On the surface it would appear as if Barack Obama finds the United Nations a more important body than the Congress of the nation he is supposed to be leading. He bypassed the Congress in order to appease the United Nations.

  This has not been lost on many members of the Congress who want to vote on giving the president approval for his actions in Libya–a little late perhaps as we have already begun military action–and this is not limited to one side of the aisle. There are both Democrats and Republicans who feel the president should have sought Congressional approval before agreeing to the United Nations resolution. (And let’s face it, America’s Nero had plenty of time to seek approval from the Congress–five weeks to be exact–while he waited for the verdict from the United Nations.)

There are members who have felt this way for years, they have strong views on the War Powers Act,” said a House Democratic aide of the opposition to Obama’s decision to involve the United States in the Libyan conflict without congressional backing
  Barack Obama has involved the United States in a civil war in another country in which the United States has no vested interest (unless he has concluded that this action is an extension of the war on terror and is invoking the Bush Doctrine to justify a pre-emptive strike, and that certainly doesn’t seem to be the case) and he has done it because the United Nations told to him to do so. And while the outcome may end up being beneficial to the United States in the long run, we cannot subscribe to the notion that the end justifies the means. Again, I support the ousting of Gaddafi but the president should have gone to the Congress first instead of blindly following the United Nations–after all, this is what many on the left (including Barack Obama) have been saying about the war in Iraq for years–and many in the Congress seem to agree with me.
from → Politics
11 Comments leave one →
  1. Conservatives on Fire's avatar
    Conservatives on Fire permalink
    March 19, 2011 9:47 pm

    You saw it coming , Bnker. Good job. But Barry is too busy partying in Rio to worry about what the Congress wants. The man is not capable of being a leader and it is probably best that he doesn’t try. I just want to go to sleep and wake up in November 2012.

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  2. Mark's avatar
    Mark permalink
    March 19, 2011 10:23 pm

    Well stated.

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  3. rjjrdq's avatar
    rjjrdq permalink
    March 20, 2011 4:46 am

    Obama has made it pretty clear that he doesn’t answer to this congress. He’s also made it clear that he would not act without United Nations approval. Yes, he is turning sovereignty over to the UN.

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  4. Larry Thomas's avatar
    Larry Thomas permalink
    March 20, 2011 10:53 am

    You tell that to the people who needed immediate help. If he had to wait for Congress they would have surely held up a much needed humanitarian effort.

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    • Steve Dennis's avatar
      Steve Dennis permalink*
      March 20, 2011 5:20 pm

      He waited for the UN for five weeks while the people who needed help were dying; he could have used this time to gain approval from the Congress while he was doing nothing but waiting for the UN.

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  5. Atlanta Roofing's avatar
    Atlanta Roofing permalink
    March 21, 2011 11:33 pm

    Stop the reckless spending that has become President Obamas legacy. Force the fiscal discipline that Democrats just can’t seem to grasp. Slash the military budget now or you are responsibl¬e for destroying our children’s inheritanc¬e. Finally, it seems that we are all in agreement. War is just to expensive. Now, the Republican Party controls the senate and can slash our military budget.

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  6. gil mendozza zuntzes's avatar
    gil mendozza zuntzes permalink
    March 25, 2011 5:33 am

    An Insert from GilLeaks to …. The Naive,Poor,Humble,Gullible,Stupid,Crazy hard working American People…. The United Nations Security Council is ….(are you ready) is… only one VOICE! the U.S. Government.

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