The leading candidate to helm the House Armed Services Committee isn’t saying when lawmakers should debate and vote on approving military force against Islamic militants.
“It ought to happen — whether it’s one month or another is not really a big issue,” Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) told The Hill on Thursday.
{mosads}President Obama last week called on Congress to vote during the lame-duck session to give him authority to attack the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which the military began doing in early August.
The plea has reopened debate on when such a vote should occur. Some lawmakers, most notably Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), argue that Congress should vote on an authorization as soon as possible.
However, Speaker John Boehner (Ohio) and other top Republicans believe the debate should wait until the next Congress is sworn in.
There are “pluses and minuses” to both arguments, according to Thornberry, considered by many the Armed Services heir apparent despite a late challenge from Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.).
For his part, current Armed Services Committee Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) said Congress should hold off on an authorization vote until next year.
“To just go through an election like we’ve had and all the people who were elected, they should be the ones that are going to have to live with the vote,” said McKeon, who retires in January.
On Wednesday, White House chief of staff Denis McDonough seemed to backpedal the president’s call for action, saying the administration would like to see “some progress” on authorization during the lame-duck session.