This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/19/world/middleeast/obama-iraq.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Obama and Lawmakers Meet to Discuss Iraq Action | Obama and Lawmakers Meet to Discuss Iraq Action |
| (2 months later) | |
| WASHINGTON — President Obama and congressional leaders on Wednesday privately confronted the politically delicate question of whether Mr. Obama would be required to ask Congress for permission to take military action against Sunni fighters in Iraq, but emerged from an hourlong Oval Office meeting with different views of what was said. | |
| Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, told reporters afterward that the president indicated that he would keep lawmakers posted on his Iraq deliberations but did not intend to seek additional authorization if he chooses to provide military assistance to the Iraqi government. | Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, told reporters afterward that the president indicated that he would keep lawmakers posted on his Iraq deliberations but did not intend to seek additional authorization if he chooses to provide military assistance to the Iraqi government. |
| But White House officials and Democratic aides said Mr. Obama did not rule out the possibility of coming to Congress for a vote to back his actions, depending on what he decides to do. Mr. Obama, they said, told the lawmakers that administration lawyers were looking at the legal implications of potential actions, which officials have said could include targeted drone strikes but would not involve combat troops. | But White House officials and Democratic aides said Mr. Obama did not rule out the possibility of coming to Congress for a vote to back his actions, depending on what he decides to do. Mr. Obama, they said, told the lawmakers that administration lawyers were looking at the legal implications of potential actions, which officials have said could include targeted drone strikes but would not involve combat troops. |
| “I’m not going to engage in hypotheticals about action the president might take since, as we discussed earlier, he is still reviewing his options when it comes to direct action,” Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said before the meeting. “So I think I would say we’ll cross that bridge when we get there, if we get there.” | “I’m not going to engage in hypotheticals about action the president might take since, as we discussed earlier, he is still reviewing his options when it comes to direct action,” Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, said before the meeting. “So I think I would say we’ll cross that bridge when we get there, if we get there.” |
| The congressional debates to authorize the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq more than a decade ago were among the most contentious in recent memory. And after more than a decade of war, many lawmakers remain deeply wary of again taking up the issue. Indeed, the prospect of a messy debate over war is something that Democrats would like to avoid in the middle of an election year. | The congressional debates to authorize the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq more than a decade ago were among the most contentious in recent memory. And after more than a decade of war, many lawmakers remain deeply wary of again taking up the issue. Indeed, the prospect of a messy debate over war is something that Democrats would like to avoid in the middle of an election year. |
| Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, has told Democrats that he thinks the president has the authority to move without approval from Congress to pursue any action short of using ground forces, and that he should do so. The authorizations to use force in Afghanistan and Iraq remain in place. But White House officials said the question of whether they would apply to new action in Iraq would depend on exactly what military actions, if any, Mr. Obama decided to take. | Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, has told Democrats that he thinks the president has the authority to move without approval from Congress to pursue any action short of using ground forces, and that he should do so. The authorizations to use force in Afghanistan and Iraq remain in place. But White House officials said the question of whether they would apply to new action in Iraq would depend on exactly what military actions, if any, Mr. Obama decided to take. |
| The meeting on Wednesday did little to make clear whether Mr. Obama had decided on a course of action in Iraq, where Sunni militants have seized several cities north of Baghdad. In separate statements, White House officials and lawmakers only disclosed that the president had reviewed his options with congressional leaders. | The meeting on Wednesday did little to make clear whether Mr. Obama had decided on a course of action in Iraq, where Sunni militants have seized several cities north of Baghdad. In separate statements, White House officials and lawmakers only disclosed that the president had reviewed his options with congressional leaders. |
| “I do not believe the president needs any further legislative authority to pursue the particular options for increased security assistance discussed today,” Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, said after the meeting. | “I do not believe the president needs any further legislative authority to pursue the particular options for increased security assistance discussed today,” Representative Nancy Pelosi of California, the Democratic leader, said after the meeting. |
| In addition to Mr. McConnell and Ms. Pelosi, the meeting included Mr. Reid and House Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio. | In addition to Mr. McConnell and Ms. Pelosi, the meeting included Mr. Reid and House Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio. |
| A statement by the White House said that Mr. Obama provided “an update on the administration’s efforts to respond to the threat” from a group that the White House calls the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. “He also reviewed our efforts to strengthen the capacity of Iraq’s security forces to confront the threat from ISIL, including options for increased security assistance.” (The group is also known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.) | A statement by the White House said that Mr. Obama provided “an update on the administration’s efforts to respond to the threat” from a group that the White House calls the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant. “He also reviewed our efforts to strengthen the capacity of Iraq’s security forces to confront the threat from ISIL, including options for increased security assistance.” (The group is also known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.) |
| The meeting recalled a similar session between the president and lawmakers at the White House in September at which the president sought the backing of House leaders for a threatened missile strike against Syria. Mr. Obama had put his plans for such an attack on hold to seek a congressional mandate. | The meeting recalled a similar session between the president and lawmakers at the White House in September at which the president sought the backing of House leaders for a threatened missile strike against Syria. Mr. Obama had put his plans for such an attack on hold to seek a congressional mandate. |
| After that meeting, Mr. Boehner and the House majority leader, Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia, both expressed support for military action, only to find that an overwhelming majority of House members opposed any significant engagement in the Syrian civil war. | After that meeting, Mr. Boehner and the House majority leader, Representative Eric Cantor of Virginia, both expressed support for military action, only to find that an overwhelming majority of House members opposed any significant engagement in the Syrian civil war. |
| The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, by a narrow margin, also approved giving Mr. Obama limited authority for military action in Syria. But broader support in the Senate never coalesced, and Mr. Obama ended up seizing a Russian proposal in which Syria agreed to voluntarily relinquish its chemical weapons stockpiles. | The Senate Foreign Relations Committee, by a narrow margin, also approved giving Mr. Obama limited authority for military action in Syria. But broader support in the Senate never coalesced, and Mr. Obama ended up seizing a Russian proposal in which Syria agreed to voluntarily relinquish its chemical weapons stockpiles. |
| White House officials noted that the Iraqi government was pleading for military help, while strikes in Syria would have been waged against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. | White House officials noted that the Iraqi government was pleading for military help, while strikes in Syria would have been waged against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. |
| The Oval Office meeting took place amid intense debate about what Mr. Obama should do in Iraq and who was to blame. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed article, former Vice President Dick Cheney and Liz Cheney wrote that “rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many.” | The Oval Office meeting took place amid intense debate about what Mr. Obama should do in Iraq and who was to blame. In a Wall Street Journal op-ed article, former Vice President Dick Cheney and Liz Cheney wrote that “rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many.” |
| Mr. Carney dismissed Mr. Cheney’s criticism with a quip: “Which president was he talking about?” | Mr. Carney dismissed Mr. Cheney’s criticism with a quip: “Which president was he talking about?” |