Trump invites congressional leaders to meeting on Turkey
By Jordain Carney - 10/15/19 07:33 PM EDT
The White House has invited congressional leadership and key committee members to a meeting with President Trump on Wednesday to discuss Turkey in the wake of Ankara's invasion of northern Syria.
Two sources confirmed to The Hill that the White House had invited leadership in both parties from both the House and Senate to meet with Trump at 3 p.m.
One of the Hill sources said that chairmen and ranking members from the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations had also been invited to the meeting.
The White House powwow would come two days after Trump announced that he was implementing financial penalties on Turkey over its military incursion into northern Syria, ratcheting up tariffs and pausing trade talks.
The financial penalties followed days of high-profile criticism from Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who warned that it would endanger the Kurds and embolden the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Lawmakers are also considering passing additional legislation to crack down on Ankara and formally break with Trump's decision to draw back troops ahead of Turkey's military operation.
The House will vote Wednesday on a resolution opposing Trump's decision. It also calls on Turkey to end its military action, calls on the United States to protect the Kurds and calls on the White House "to present a clear and specific plan for the enduring defeat of ISIS."
Though the resolution will put lawmakers on the record on Trump's strategy, it only directly mentions Trump once when it notes that Trump had a phone call with Turkey President Erdogan where they discussed the upcoming Turkish operation and that shortly thereafter the White House announced the decision to pull back troops.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) urged support for the resolution in a joint statement on Tuesday.
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https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/465969-trump-invites-congressional-leaders-to-meeting-on-turkey
