Finally - Congress Gets A Little Spine

Both Democrats and Republicans in the House seem to believe that the President is acting outside the bounds of law and the constitution with respect to Libya, passing a resolution calling on the President to take the actions necessary for Congressional approval of Libyan operations. Finally, I had begun to despair that the Congress would assert its authority. Despite the constitutional implications of the issue, I didn't think that the courts could resolve this particular issue, so absent action by the Congress, nothing would be done. Make no mistake, the resolution that was passed was non-binding, so they have not really exercised their full constitutional prerogative. But it is a worthy start. As the Washington Times article points out, 91 Democrats, over half the House caucus voted for at least one of two competing resolutions that were presented. The bipartisan nature of the debate should concern the President.

The Kucinich resolution failed 148-265. In a telling signal, 87 Republicans voted for Mr. Kucinich’s resolution — more than the 61 Democrats that did.

Still, taken together, 324 members of Congress voted for one resolution or both resolutions, including 91 Democrats, or nearly half the caucus. The size of the votes signals overwhelming discontent with Mr. Obama’s handling of the constitutional issues surrounding the Libya fight.

Despite the rebuke, the administration continues to act as if they have done nothing wrong. It is part of a train of abuses that can lead to dictatorship. We should keep the pressure on the Congress to end the charade that our involvement is not part of a war.