NEW YORK, August 12 (RIA Novosti) – US President Barack Obama’s decision to launch attacks on Islamic State (IS) fighters in northern Iraq without congressional approval exceeded his authority, veteran lawmaker Paul Findley told RIA Novosti.
“Just as with threats to attack Syria last year, an attack on Iraq violates the Constitution and the War Powers Resolution. As any US president, Barack Obama commits an impeachable offense if he does not follow the Constitution,” Findley said on Monday.
“Some observers misread a section of the War Powers Resolution as giving the president 60 days to make war without a declaration from Congress. The section cited actually limits even war-making in the event of an attack upon the US, its territories, or armed forces, which is not the case in Iraq.
“In my view, a tight rein on presidential war making is more important today than ever before,” Findley added.
Findley served as a member of United States House of Representatives for 22 years. He was a key author of the War Powers Resolution, which limited the power of US presidents to wage armed conflicts overseas.
The US has begun supplying weapons to the Kurdish Peshmergas territory and launching airstrikes in an effort to quell the Sunni insurgency. Islamic State fighters have made considerable gains in northern Iraq in recent months, forcing tens of thousands of people from religious minorities to flee their homes.
