Durbin Delivers Floor Speech On President Trump's Decision To Bomb Iranian Nuclear Sites Without Congressional Authority
Durbin also highlighted his support for Senator Kaine’s war powers resolution
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) delivered a speech on the Senate floor regarding President Trump’s decision to bomb three nuclear sites in Iran without Congressional authority. Article 1, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution states that the power to declare war is an explicit power of Congress and Congress overwhelmingly reaffirmed this constitutional provision when it passed the War Powers Act in 1973 over the veto of President Nixon.
“We are here today to ensure the Senate fulfills its constitutional duties regarding the sole power to involve our nation in war,” said Durbin. “Under the [War Powers Act], the President has the authority to approve military attacks as a response to an imminent threat or with the expressed authorization of Congress. Neither of these was the case with President Trump’s decision to bomb Iran over the weekend.”
“The Iranian regime sponsors terrorism, wants to destroy Israel and undermine U.S. interests, and represses its own people. And it is interested in building a nuclear weapon. But those are not justifications to ignore the Constitution. If the U.S. is to start a war with Iran over these or any other issues—the Constitution itself requires it must be with the consent of Congress,” said Durbin.
During his first term, President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal which required mandatory inspections that were working at the time. The rash decision ultimately contributed to the dangerous situation with Iran today in which its leadership was moving closer to nuclear weapon capability.
During his speech, Durbin expressed his support for Senator Tim Kaine’s (D-VA) war powers resolution, which would require a prompt debate and vote prior to using additional U.S. military force against Iran.
“When I reflect on the time that I’ve served in the Senate, one of the most memorable votes was on the question of the invasion of Iraq… There were 23 who voted against the war in Iraq. I believe it was the best vote I ever cast as a Senator. There were no weapons of mass destruction. We were invading a country under a false premise, we were going to wage a war there and unfortunately did at the expense of American lives for a long period of time,” said Durbin.
“The Senate should not be led into another war in the Middle East without the consent of the American people through Congress. Our founders knew this point. One should never send our sons and daughters into war without the consent of the American people—an argument I’ve made regardless of who the president is of either party… We’ve already ceded too much [congressional] power on appropriations and other key items—let’s not do that when it comes to war.”
Video of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Audio of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here.
Footage of Durbin’s remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.
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