In a vote on Thursday, the Senate passed S.J. Resolution 54, in a vote of 56-41. The resolution is a War Powers Act challenge to the unauthorized US involvement in the War in Yemen, and would require the US to cease its involvement, if a complementary bill passes in the House. 45 years to the day after the War Powers Act was passed, this is the first successful challenge.
Several amendments were also voted on, with most passing and added to the bill. Sen. Young’s (R-IN) amendment clarified that this bill includes a prohibition on refueling Saudi warplanes, as both the administration and opponents argued that didn’t count as war. Sen. Cornyn (R-TX) offered and passed three amendments; two mandated reports be provided, and the third said that despite this bill not being about Israel, the opposition to the Yemen War wasn’t meant to oppose anything the US does with Israel.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) was the only one whose amendments didn’t pass, as both were designed specifically to undermine the bill. The first said that the US could stay in the war so long as they claim to be trying to “reduce civilian casualties,” while the second said the US could stay so long as they were fighting the Shi’ite Houthi movement. Both failed handily.
The resolution passing caps weeks of effort in the Senate, including multiple votes which were needed to advance the bill to the point where it would actually get a substantial debate and a vote of its own. The success of this challenge is historic.
And yet it is incomplete at this point. House efforts to challenge the Yemen War have repeatedly been derailed by the Republican leadership changing rules at the last minute to deny it a proper vote. This almost certainly means no House version will be entertained until January at the earliest, when the new Congress takes over.
The Trump Administration has loudly opposed this challenge to the Yemen War, arguing simultaneously that it’s not really a war and that US support for Saudi Arabia is so critical that it shouldn’t matter how bad the war is. Anger at the Saudis over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi is seen to have driven a lot of the last minute support for this bill.
Roll this little snowball forward !
Shocked the vote tally didn’t change much. And extremely happy.
Tom Cotton is the new…..Tom Cotton. I couldn’t think of anyone to compare him to. I wanted to say McCain but this guy makes McCain look sensible.
Tom Cotton is Adelson’s chamber boy.
I agree. I hated how he was introduced as a Teaparty guy when he was always just a neo neocon.
He doesn’t “Cotton” to peace.
Of course they passed an amendment protecting Israel. Pathetic.
This is good but I fear the GOP might just funnel weapons through Israel to the Saudis the way they did the Contras in the Eighties, thus Cornyn’s odd amendment.
True, the way the Pentagon hides money, it doesn’t seem possible to stop them doing whatever they please. I guess the answer is to stop producing a surplus of weapons.
I thought it was just standard practice to include a pledge of loyalty amendment to Israel with any resolution voted on by congress, regardless of the resolution’s purpose.
Has anybody noticed the comment section under Justin’s latest post has mysteriously disappeared? The plot thickens….
Yes, it disappeared last night. I thought it was a coding glitch, but, if that’s all it was why haven’t they fixed it yet?
It’s not a glitch. Raimondo asked that comments be turned off for his posts and deleted from his most recent post.
“House efforts to challenge the Yemen War have repeatedly been derailed by the Republican leadership”
Wrong. When 18 Republicans defected, 5 Democrats stepped in and kept the Yemen War going. This can’t be hung all on Republicans. The warmongers are more widespread than that.
Both parties are run by warmongers. But more Democratic voters are antiwar then Republican voters and that gets reflected in the reality that more Democratic congress members are consistently antiwar than Republicans. But the Democrats are more dangerous than the Republicans because the Republican congress members tend to reflect the views of their constituents while the Democratic politicians generally deceive and betray the people who elect them. As you correctly observed, at critical moments the Democrats in congress provide the warmongers who control both parties with the votes they need to support wars on behalf of the crony capitalists and the Zionists.
The arithmetic……More war….gop…195….dem ….6…..antiwar..gop 15…dems…172….
If you are correct Dave, in theory, when the Democrats take over the House next year, they should support a similar bill. I hope you are correct, but, in my experience, just enough Democrats defect to make it not pass, almost like they know exactly what the vote will be, and plan their votes accordingly.
Also, unfortunately, the Senate did not provide a veto proof majority, so our Orange Julius in Chief can simply veto it if it were to come to his desk.
It should be simple to get trump on board, jes tell him it was Obama’s idea to get us in :^)
Trump can’t veto a joint resolution of the House and Senate. :
The War Powers Act provides, in relevant part:
” . . . at any time that United States Armed Forces are engaged in hostilities outside the territory of the United States, its possessions and territories without a declaration of war or specific statutory authorization, such forces shall be removed by the President if the Congress so directs by concurrent resolution.” 50 U.S.C. §1544(c).
If the House passes Senate Joint Resolution 54, the President must comply unless the Supreme Court rules the War Powers Act unconstitutional.
“unless the Supreme Court rules the War Powers Act unconstitutional.”
In my opinion, there are parts of the War Powers Act that are unconstitutional, but those parts are the ones that actually enable war. I would think that any part of the Act that allows Congress to limit war are perfectly constitutional, as the Constitution clearly states that the CIC cannot prosecute a war without a Congressional declaration.
“Trump can’t veto a joint resolution of the House and Senate”
Thanks, Sky, I didn’t know that.
“Republican leadership”. You are wrong Mark. Ryan got the GOP rules committee to add the Yemen amendment to the bipartisan farm bill, thereby putting dems in a checkmate position. Vote against their constituents who favor the farm bill, or against the war. Clever Ryan. Cowardly and corrupt. Yes, Gop leadership made this happen.
And that was this time. The first time they tied it to a bill about shooting wolves. Ryan is piece of work. Him and Pence would be neck and neck in a phony Christian race.
Oh of course not, Congress would be careful and tiptoe around Israel and their powerful lobby. Don’t want to upset that applecart with the $$$$$ stuffed into their special interest pockets.
Our peace president has already announced that he will veto if that legislation comes to his desk.
Of course, there will be no restraints on the CIA. They can use all that Afghan drug money to finance any “operation” they want, Congress be damned.
Makes me wonder of it wouldn’t be possible to prohibit US taxpayer funded and trained mercenaries to ply their skills.
To read, and interpret data is skill, the security state legally limits what a former intelligence worker can do with this skill. Why not trained military personnel?
We are just seeing our finest playing us for fools. And we deserve it — still believing in parties and their politics. The bill passed erscin Senate, but will not in the House of Representatives. President is a Republican, so he gets support, some secect to make up numbers and give us a ferl good optics. And so afraid they are of precedents that it was necessary to free up Israel from any obligation under this bill. If the President was a Democrat, it would be the other way around. During NATO war for Kosovo it was republicans rhat were telling us how our social security money is being squandered on foreign wars and nation building.
And the crap about refueling is sickening. There is no need to refuel jers that are bombing within few hundred miles from their bases. Just a bit if Arabian sand into our eyes. This does not include prohibition of UAE hiring our mercenaries into their army, thus avoiding legislation barring our private armies from mercenary employment. All they did was become part of UAE military, and problem solved.
And no word about our naval blockade — will that cease, or starvation goes on, with the exception of rations we allow through UN? Why cannot any country bring food and medicine, send medical teams? Of course not — that would defeat the purpose of starving Yemeni Shia into submission. All in the name of fighting Iran. The whole show was just to accuse MbS for Kashoggi murder. As if that is a fact. So, with Saudis it is a good cop – bad cop, until they do what told. Iran, Iran, Iran. For us, the sob story of them giving a fig about starving Yemeni children.
What is most fascinating in this story is a complete silence on old Jewish communities in North Yemen (Zaidi Yemen, or as we say, Houthis). Yhis is an ancient community very much integrated into the fabric of society. I guess — they are the sacrifice to the greater good. Iran.