The U.S. Air Force F-22 fighter jets fly in formation during a military aircraft flight along the Hudson River and New York Harbor past York City and New Jersey, USA July 4, 2020.
Mike Segar | Reuters
Some Senate Democrats on Friday criticized President Joe Biden’s decision to launch an air strike in Syria on Thursday night without meeting with the entire Congress.
According to a spokesman for the National Security Council, the Pentagon briefed congressional leadership before the action. According to the Democratic assistant, the staff of the house, Nancy Pelosi, was notified before the strike.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., Asked for an information session from the Biden government on Friday about the decision behind the airstrikes.
“The American people deserve to hear the reasoning of the Administration for these strikes and the legal justification for acting without coming to Congress. Offensive military action without the approval of Congress is not constitutionally absent extraordinary circumstances,” reads a statement from Kaine’s office. Kaine is a member of the Senate Committee on Armed Services.
The NSC spokesperson said there would be a full briefing early next week.
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Chairman of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee, also called for transparency.
“Congress must maintain this administration to the same standard as previous administrations, and demand clear legal justifications for military action, especially within theaters such as Syria, where Congress has not explicitly approved any U.S. military action,” Murphy said Friday. said a statement.
A representative of Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the top Democrat from the Senate, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Biden on Thursday targeted U.S. military airstrikes in eastern Syria at facilities belonging to what the militia supported, according to Iran, in response to recent rocket attacks against U.S. targets in Iraq.
In an attack on February 15, rockets hit the U.S. military base in Irbil in the Kurdish region, killing one non-U.S. contractor and injuring a number of U.S. contractors and a U.S. service member. Another salvo hit a base days later that housed U.S. troops north of Baghdad, injuring at least one contractor. On Monday, rockets hit Baghdad’s Green Zone, which houses the U.S. embassy and other diplomatic missions.
“It’s hard to say with any certainty whether there is a strategic calculation that drives the … recent increase in attacks, or whether it’s just a continuation of the kind of attacks we’ve seen in the past,” John said. Pentagon Secretary Kirby told a news conference Monday.
“We will hold Iran accountable through the attacks, through the provocations of its proxy,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Ned Price said in a separate briefing on Monday. The rocket attack in Irbil “is still being actively investigated,” he said.
The U.S. airstrikes on Thursday gave Biden rare praise from across the aisle. Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., thanks Biden for the move.
In 2018, then-President Donald Trump ordered military strikes in Syria. The move also led to criticism from Democrats.
“The president must come to Congress and obtain an authorization for the use of military force by proposing a comprehensive strategy with clear objectives that keep our military security safe,” Pelosi said. tweeted at that point.
– Reuters contributed to this report.