McCaul: Strikes will eventually need approval

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Texas) on Sunday said the Obama administration would eventually have to get approval from Congress for its continued airstrikes in Iraq. 

“We believe that the administration should be in consultation with Congress, so far they have under the War Powers Act,” he said on ABC’s “This Week.” 

{mosads}”But once that period of time expires, we believe it is necessary to come back to the Congress to get additional authorities and to update, if you will, the authorized use of military force.” 

Some have warned the current use of force authorization relates to al Qaeda, not the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), spawned from the terrorist network, and targeted today. 

McCaul has been warning for months that ISIS is the “greatest threat” since 9/11 and has called for expanded airstrikes. He said the militant group’s beheading of U.S. journalist James Foley is a turning point. 

“This has been festering for the last year and now it is culminating with the killing, the beheading of an American journalist, which I think is a turning point,” he said. “The American people — it has sort of opened their eyes to what this really is. The true character of ISIS.”

McCaul said the focus of ISIS is establishing a caliphate in the Middle East. But the militants would like nothing more than to hit an overseas target, he added. 

“Don’t kid yourself for a second,” he said. “They are intent on hitting the West. And there are external operations, I believe, under way.” 

“I believe the threat is very real,” he added. “I think the FBI and Homeland Security officials believe it is real,” noting the large number of Western fighters and the group’s recent alliance with al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.