|
 Some lawmakers contend that Obama should seek congressional
authorization for airstrikes in Iraq against the Sunni militants.
However, it is not clear whether such a vote would take place this
month or whether he needs Congress to approve the limited actions
already under way.
Obama "needs to come forward with a plan" for dealing with the
Islamic State, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell told Reuters
in an interview in Kentucky, where is campaigning for re-election.
"I think the Congress is anxious to see what the president thinks we
ought to do about this," McConnell said.
"My guess is it will require some kind of authorization from us,
maybe some kind of funding, and I think if it's a credible plan to
go after these killers, he's very likely to be supported on a
bipartisan basis," added McConnell, a fierce critic of Obama.
The Obama administration is dispatching senior intelligence
officials and Secretary of State John Kerry to brief members of
Congress and staff about the militant group in the coming weeks,
congressional aides said.
Officials from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence
and the National Counterterrorism Center will brief congressional
staff on Friday, before Congress returns on Monday from its August
recess.
Kerry will testify to members of the House of Representatives
Foreign Affairs Committee during the week of Sept. 15, an aide said.
McConnell said he expects Obama to submit a plan to Congress, which
aims to take another long recess starting around the third week of
September until after the Nov. 4 congressional elections, leaving a
small window for Congress to act.
"I approve of what he is doing so far ... and I hope he will do a
lot more" to battle the Islamic State, said McConnell, although he
said Obama should have acted sooner.
Obama has formally informed Congress about airstrikes and other
military activity in Iraq to counter the threat from the Islamic
State, as he is required to do under the War Powers Act.
[to top of second column] |
However, the act gives presidents authority for only temporary
military action, and Obama would have to seek Congress' approval for
a campaign lasting more than 60 days. The rise of the Islamic
State group is expected to be an issue in campaigning for the
congressional elections.
Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House majority Leader, said in a
memo to fellow Republicans on Thursday that the Obama administration
had been "too passive" in allowing militants to gain strength.
Signaling Republican intentions to use accusations of Democrats'
mismanagement over Iraq and Syria as a campaign issue, he chided the
administration over a U.S. Forest Service article on roasting
marshmallows with healthier ingredients such as fruit instead of
chocolate.
"For the things that government is supposed to do - like confront
terrorist groups - we don’t have a strategy, but for things
Americans are supposed to be able to do for themselves - like
figuring out the best ingredients for s' mores - government
bureaucrats have that figured out," McCarthy said.
(Additional reporting by Richard Cowan in Kevil, Kentucky, and David
Lawder in Washington; Editing by Will Dunham)
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
