pudge's Journal: Authorization to Go to Iran

Senator Biden today made a big point that Bush, in his view, does not have authorization to send troops into Iran.

As best I can tell, he's wrong. He's right when he said the authorization for Iraq does not authorize Bush to send troops to Iran. But the War Powers Act, according to my understanding, gives the President the right to send troops pretty much anywhere, and get Congressional authorization later, else pull them out.

What's really funny to me about this, though, is that Biden says Bush can't go into Iran without Congressional authorization, yet just this Sunday, Biden was saying the only way Congress can force Bush out of Iraq is by cutting funding. That's almost self-evidently false: the very authorization that he says is required for Iran, that Congress passed for Iraq, may also be revoked. By a simple majority.

The Democrats don't want people to know that. They don't want their antiwar base to know the war could be over within about two months if the Democrats wanted to end it, without even cutting funding, because the Democrats know it's a bad idea to pull out of Iraq, and don't want to actually do it.

I don't know.

[Talinom]

They don't want their antiwar base to know the war could be over within about two months if the Democrats wanted to end it, without even cutting funding, because the Democrats know it's a bad idea to pull out of Iraq, and don't want to actually do it.

Could it be that they have their heads in the sand [blogs.com]?

I like peace. I want peace. I feel it is what any sane person wants. Sadly I feel we may not be dealing with sane people.

Islamists are fighting while giving only two options: die or submit. Either opti

Simple majority?

[polymath69]

Am I missing your point? Presumably Bush would veto any bill cutting funding for the war, so Congress would need a 2/3 majority to bother to try.

Re:

[pudge]

Am I missing your point? Presumably Bush would veto any billcutting funding for the war, so Congress would need a 2/3majority to bother to try.

Biden said the Congress cannot revoke the authorization to be in Iraq (or implied it, by saying the only thing they can do is cut funding). I am saying, no, they can revoke that authorization. Whether they have the votes to pull it off and override a veto is separate from the point that Congress has the authority to do it, which he was denying.

My use of "simple majority" was only meant to emphasize that they could pass it, not that it would necessarily be signed, of course. The point is that Congress ca