During a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday, Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi questioned why President Barack Obama has not struck against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's air force.
"We have not declared war on the Syrian regime, Senator," Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford replied, according to
CNSNews.com.
The Mississippi senator then asked if it would take a "congressional declaration of war" to attack the Syrian air force. Gen. Dunford replied, "The task he's given us militarily is against ISIL, Senator."
Gen. Dunford said he would provide the "policy recommendation" to the president in private after Sen. Wicker then asked him to recommend to the president "as to whether we should take out the air force that is causing the majority of the civilian fatalities and casualties," reports CNSNews.com.
According to
The Weekly Standard, Dunford said he would do more to fight ISIS if he could, "but the limitation is not just a political limitation. Part of it is our partners on the ground."
Congress has not specifically declared war on the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Congress gets its authority from a 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force that mentions those who "planned, authorized, committed or aided" in the 9/11 attacks.
White House spokesman John Earnest was asked about the possibility of getting a new military force authorization specifically designed for ISIS/ISIL before Obama left office.
A legislative plan to "more narrowly tailor" the 2001 plan was not acted on by Congress, Earnest said and Republicans rejected that proposal, saying Obama had no strategy to win against ISIS/ISIL. But then they did not rewrite the proposal.
The 2001 plan covers actions against ISIS/ISIL.
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