Dems want to ban U.S. ground troops against ISIS
Senate Democrats are trying to attach a ban on using ground troops to combat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as part of an annual defense policy bill.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), as well as Sens. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), are offering an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would largely ban using U.S. ground combat troops to battle ISIS.
{mosads}Murphy said on the Senate floor his measure includes “limited exceptions,” including rescue operations, intelligence gathering and planning.
“Given that we are reauthorizing hundreds of millions of dollars in this bill in order to take the fight to ISIL, I think it makes sense to have some common sense limitations on the use of that money that are in keeping with very public promise that the president has made,” Murphy said.
While the administration has said it doesn’t plan to send in U.S. ground combat troops, Secretary of State John Kerry told members of the Foreign Relations Committee late last year the administration doesn’t want a ban.
Murphy pointed to the Iraq War as an example of why U.S. ground troops should not be used.
“There is nothing about the last ten years of American occupation in Iraq that tells us that U.S. troops inside Iraq can have the effect of killing more terrorists that are created,” he said, adding Congress should “learn about the mistakes from the Iraq War.”
The Democrats’ amendment comes as Congress has stalled on passing an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) to fight the terrorist group.
Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) are trying to jumpstart that process by introducing a proposal, which they hope will be use as a springboard for action on the Foreign Relations Committee.
Udall on Tuesday called for Congress to pass a limited war authorization, adding that it is “important to be clear that an invasion of American ground troops is not the answer.”
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