'If Iran Is So Bad...': Tim Kaine Dares Pro-Iran Strike Senators To Introduce Authorization For War

Forbes Breaking News

During Senate floor debate on Friday, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) spoke in support of a war powers resolution to require Congressional approval prior to U.S. military action against Iran.

Transcript

00:00The remaining two speakers, Senator Schumer, has yielded his time to me.

00:03I will be the last speaker before the vote.

00:07My colleague from Idaho says this is driven by hate and vitriol until President Trump.

00:12He well knows that from my first months in the Senate,

00:17I have taken this position now against four presidents, Democratic and Republican.

00:22The principles that have been stated on this floor about the Constitution and War Powers Resolution are very, very clear.

00:28Congress declares war, once declared, the President is the Commander-in-Chief.

00:35There is no war without a declaration of Congress.

00:38The President as Commander-in-Chief can defend the United States against imminent attack,

00:43but there was no such imminent threat posed by the Iranian nuclear program

00:49as the President's own national security advisor testified to Congress shortly before this strike.

00:56And as the Israeli foreign minister announced before the U.S. strike,

01:02that the Israeli actions had set the nuclear program back two or three years.

01:07No imminent attack on the United States.

01:10No imminent threat.

01:11That means Congress gets to declare war.

01:14This is not about hatred for any president.

01:16It is about standing up and doing what we took an oath to do.

01:19My colleague from South Carolina says we've only declared war five times, ending with World War II.

01:26That's not accurate.

01:28Congress has had the guts to at least vote on authorizing war up through 2002.

01:35But in 2002, something happened, Mr. President, in this body.

01:39The Senate and the House got lied into a war with bogus intelligence about the weapons program of the nation of Iraq.

01:49We should be haunted by that.

01:51We should be haunted by that.

01:54The claims that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction led us into a war where thousands of troops and thousands of U.S. contractors were killed.

02:04And so what should have been the learning that came out of that,

02:08that we should do a good job kicking the tires as Congress before we go into a war and not get lied into a war?

02:15Instead, Mr. President, what I fear, since there's been no willingness of Congress to vote on any war since 2002,

02:26is what members of this body have decided is,

02:29wow, we got it wrong.

02:31We were lied into a war.

02:33We voted in a way that we regretted.

02:36So let's not vote at all.

02:41Let's not vote at all.

02:42Let's overturn the congressional and constitutional history that says we only go to war with Congress

02:48and try to hide in the grass.

02:51Many of my colleagues have said things about Iran and how bad Iran is.

02:56None of them have ever introduced an authorization for war against Iran.

03:00If Iran is so bad, do that.

03:02People in this body would rather not vote so they can't be held accountable.

03:10I get that.

03:11That's a human impulse.

03:15It's just a human impulse that so disrespects the service of our men and women in uniform.

03:21If we're going to send troops into harm's way, our sons and daughters,

03:25whether they're flying bombing missions or ground troops or covert operations,

03:29we ought to have the guts.

03:30In this body, to cast a vote, saying that that war is necessary.

03:36Not just act as cheerleaders and hide from culpability, hide from accountability, hide from responsibility.

03:45If you vote against Senate Joint Resolution 59, what you are saying is,

03:50this president should be able to wage war without coming to Congress.

03:53If you think the president should have to come to Congress, whether you're for or against a war in Iran,

04:00you'll support Senate Joint Resolution 59.

04:03You'll support the Constitution that has stood the test of time.

04:07You'll support your oath.

04:09I urge a positive vote on the resolution, and I yield back.

04:11The question occurs in the motion to discharge SJ Res 15.

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