Defense & Intelligence Policy, Business and Technology

White House: New AUMF law not needed for Islamic State fight

Army Times: WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has adequate legal authority to combat terrorist groups and doesn’t support a push in Congress for a new law permitting military action against the Islamic State and other militants, a senior White House official said Tuesday.

The comments Tuesday by White House legislative director Marc Short came as Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky ramped up pressure on his colleagues to reassert their power to decide whether to send American troops into harm’s way. Paul, a leader of the GOP’s non-interventionist wing, wants a vote on his amendment to the annual defense policy bill that would let the authorizations after the Sept. 11 attacks lapse after six months. He says Congress would use the time to pass a new war authority.

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