http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/mar/11/military-backs-aumf-little-support-congress/print/Ash Carter: Islamic State ‘metastasizing,’ U.S. intervention desperately needed
By Jacqueline Klimas - The Washington Times - Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter said Wednesday that the Islamic State is "metastasizing" outside of Syria and Iraq and urged lawmakers to pass the president's war authorization without limitations on where U.S. military could strike.
Senators, however, worried that it would be difficult to pass any authorization for the use of military force since neither party supports the language proposed by the president and administration officials said no authorization is better than a party-line vote.
Senior administration officials defended the president's three-year authorization to fight the Islamic State at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, saying that the authorization for the use of military force provides enough flexibility to defeat the Islamic State and would provide reassurance to troops and allies that America is united in its desire to defeat the Islamic State, also called Daesh.
"Your unity would also send an unmistakable message to leaders of Daesh," Secretary of State John Kerry said. "They have to understand they can't divide us, don't let them."
Mr. Carter said that Congress needs to pass an authorization for the use of military force, or AUMF in legislative speak, without any geographic limitations to allow Americans to strike the terrorist group, also known as ISIL or ISIS, which is expanding its reach in the region.
"The proposed AUMF wisely does not include any geographical restriction, because ISIL already shows signs of metastasizing outside of Syria and Iraq," Mr. Carter said.
Despite stating that the group's geographical reach is growing, Mr. Kerry said the past seven months of U.S. airstrikes have made progress in diminishing the group's momentum.
"In the places where we have focused and where we are asking you to focus, at this moment in time, it is clear that even while savage attacks continue, there is the beginning of a process to cut off their supply lines, to take out their leaders, to cut off their finances, to reduce the foreign fighters, to counter the messaging that has brought some of the fighters to this effort," he said.
Lawmakers said that there is little support for the president's authorization with Democrats believing it goes too far and Republicans believing it puts too many limitations on the commander-in-chief.
"What we have come to understand is that — this is not a pejorative statement, it's an observation — we don't know of a single Democrat in the U.S. Congress...that supports this authorization to use military force," said Sen. Bob Corker, Tennessee Republican and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "What it does on this side of the aisle is put Republican senators in the position of looking at a limited AUMF and ratifies a strategy in Syria which many people don't believe is effective. It doesn't show the commitment necessary to be successful in the short term."
An ambiguous portion of the authorization that prohibits "enduring offensive ground combat operations" is the one of the main sticking points.
Even military leaders can't agree how to define it. Gen. John Allen, who is leading the Islamic State campaign, previously said it could mean anything from two weeks to two years. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Martin Dempsey said last week that he saw it as a mission-based, not time-based, limitation. And Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said it just means the U.S. can't wage a campaign like it did in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Mr. Kerry said he disagreed with Gen. Allen's assessment, and said no one is considering a years or even months-long use of U.S. troops on the ground.
"I think it's been very clear how limited it is," he said.
Republicans say that the president should be able to put American boots on the ground if the need arises, but Democrats say the wording essentially amounts to a blank check.
"Clearly there's a need to define exactly what would be allowed," said Sen. Robert Menendez, New Jersey Democrat and ranking member of the committee. "Legally, it seems there's the potential for large numbers of U.S, troops to be deployed to Iraq and Syria with the authorization as submitted."
Defense officials emphasized that any authorization should be passed by a bipartisan vote to signal broad support to service members asked to put their lives on the line, which seems unlikely as lawmakers acknowledge there is little middle ground between Democrats and Republicans. Mr. Kerry said passing an authorization on a party-line vote was worse than having no authorization at all.
While the president's authorization would last three years, Mr. Carter said he does not expect the terrorist group, also known as ISIL, to be defeated by then. Rather, the three year time period, he said, gives the American people and a new Congress to review what is needed under a new president.
"To me, this is a sensible and principled provision of the AUMF, even though I can't ensure the counter ISIL campaign will be completed in three years," he said.
The administration has been conducting airstrikes against the Islamic State for months, saying it has authorization to do so under a 2001 law passed in the days after 9/11. Mr. Menendez stressed that it's important to pass an authorization specifically tailored to the Islamic State fight, especially after seeing how the 2001 authorization he supported has been manipulated to fit drastically different conflicts.
"It's imperative we don't shoehorn this conflict into an old AUMF. It may be convenient, but it isn't right," he said.
The president's plan would repeal a 2002 authorization to fight in Iraq, but would leave the 2001 rule in place.
Two members of Code Pink were kicked out of the hearing after erupting into protests within the first half hour of the hearing. Mr. Corker told them that they had to right to be there and observe, but not to disrupt testimony.
"I don't think you're helping your cause at all, I think you're hurting your cause," he said.
