Hill Leaders More Hopeful on War Authorization After White House Meet

Still Waiting for White House to Decide on Wording

In comments today following a meeting with President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R – KY) said he believes that an authorization vote on the ISIS war could come in the “near future.”

Under the War Powers Resolution, a vote is required for military action lasting more than 90 days. The ISIS war began in earnest in September, but no vote has been scheduled.

According to Sen. McConnell, the White House still hasn’t decided on the language of the resolution authorizing the war, and they’re simply waiting for such language before holding a vote.

With hawks dominated most of the committees in the new Senate, it seems like the passage of any authorization vote should be fairly easy, so long as the wording is vague enough to leave open the prospect for escalation.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.