Libertarian Party to Sen Rand Paul: ‘Your bid for a declaration of war against ISIS is unjustifiable and dangerous’
What you would think would be cozy bedfellows doesn’t necessarily always materialize. On Monday, libertarian-leaning Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky released a draft Declaration of War resolution against Islamic State (also known as ISIS) that he intends on introducing when Congress comes back into session in December.
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Sen. Paul plans to introduce a resolution to declare war against the Islamic State, terminate the authority under the 2002 Iraq AUMF, and set a date for expiration of the 2001 Afghanistan AUMF.
“When Congress comes back into session in December, I will introduce a resolution to declare war against ISIS. I believe the President must come to Congress to begin a war and that Congress has a duty to act. Right now, this war is illegal until Congress acts pursuant to the Constitution and authorizes it,” Sen. Paul said.
However, the political party that his father, former Rep Ron Paul, ran for President for in 1988 pulled no punches in their criticism of Paul’s proposed action.
In a letter from the chair of the National Libertarian Party, Nicholas J. Sarwark, the proposed resolution by Sen Paul was criticized severely.
“We agree with you that Congress should obey the Constitution. We should never engage in foreign wars without a congressional declaration of war, a restraint on military action put in place by our Founding Fathers to ensure lawmakers never send our troops to war without deliberation”, writes Sarwack.
However, the agreement ended there. Sarwack continues, “We agree with your father, Ron Paul, who for decades was a lonely yet brave voice in Congress for peace. He was right when he called for getting the U.S. military out of the Middle East.
“Everyone knows that you’re posturing to get the Republican nomination for president in 2016. But for this long-shot hope of winning the nomination, you have endorsed a roster of hawkish Big Government Republicans — from Mitt Romney to Mitch McConnell. And now you’re calling for sending our troops back to Iraq, which will be a death sentence for many of them.
“Just how much can your long-shot presidential bid be worth? Is it worth the lives of these young men and women? The Libertarian Party says, “Absolutely not!”
The letter closes leaving nothing to interpretation–“Your bid for a declaration of war against ISIS is unjustifiable and dangerous. Please withdraw it immediately.”
