Rand Paul Proposes A War Declaration Against ISIS In Iraq And Syria

By Staff Reporter

Nov 25, 2014 01:55 PM EST

The Kentucky Republican senator Rand Paul has revealed that he would propose an official war declaration against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The proposal came as an attempt to both rein in presidential war powers as the 2016 elections are approaching. It is also to better define the fight against the jihadists that has brutally seized northern Syrian parts and neighboring Iraq.

Aside from the official war declaration, Rand Paul also sets limitations in the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. According to NBC News, his proposal includes the limitation for using combat ground forces with the exception when the Americans are in "imminent danger," intelligence reasons or for specific high value subjects.

"When Congress comes back into session in December, I will introduce a resolution to declare war against ISIS," Paul stated. "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."

The Republican senator does not only proposes for a war against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. CBS News reported that he will also use his proposal to dismiss the authority granted by the 2002 Iraq Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) and set a date for the 2001 AUMF expiration.

"I believe that Congress -- both Democrats and Republicans -- would support a narrowly tailored authorization that gives the president the authority he needs here," Paul stated.

Paul Rand, a prospective 2016 presidential candidate whose libertarian-inclined foreign policy is viewed doubtfully by several conservatives and mainstream Republicans, might face a repercussion from his own party members who don't want to limit the President's authority when it comes to fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

"[It] doesn't mean you give up your principles of thinking war is the last resort," Rand Paul told TIME earlier this year about his support for fighting ISIS, which has seized huge swaths of Iraq and Syria.

Rand Paul has pursued to shed the opinion that he is a nationalist, as reported by CNN. And his proposal to declare war against ISIS in Iraq and Syria boosts his profile as a firm supporter of the need to rein in presidential supremacy.