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Guthrie Wants Congressional Approval Before Any Further U.S. Attacks on Syria

David Brinkley

Kentucky’s Second District Congressman thinks lawmakers will need to have a greater say in any future U.S. military action in Syria.

Bowling Green Republican Brett Guthrie said it remains to be seen if the Syrian regime will change its behavior after last week’s U.S. missile attack on an airfield. His comments come as questions are raised over the role Congress should play in approving the kinds of strikes carried out

“And I actually do think the president had the authority to do what he did the other day, but I think if we’re going to engage and move forward, it needs to have Congressional authorization,” Rep. Guthrie said. “I said that when President Obama was president, and I’ll say it now.”

Guthrie said he thinks it’s important that the U.S. sent Syria a strong message after it used chemical weapons on its civilians. But he added that he’s not sure if Congress would be willing to give President Trump authorization to launch a broader military campaign in Syria.

Guthrie’s fellow Bowling Green Republican, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, has been a vocal opponent of U.S. military action in Syria.

Future of Affordable Care Act

Guthrie said his party’s leaders are still working to secure the votes needed to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Brett Guthrie of Bowling Green admits the failure to repeal the federal health care law known as Obamacare was a black eye for his party, given that Republicans control the presidency and both chambers of Congress.

Guthrie said GOP leaders are holding meetings with the small group of Republican lawmakers who prevented the repeal from passing the U.S. House in late March.

“I don’t know what the actual count is. I would guess it’s somewhere around 200, and you need 216 votes. So 200 people are going in one direction, and 21 are going another. And the question is, are we going to get enough of the 20-25 to say, OK, 80 percent of what I want is better than nothing.”

Guthrie predicts members of Congress will receive pressure from the public to repeal the ACA when next year’s rates for health insurance plans are released in the coming weeks.

Supporters of the ACA say repealing the law will negatively impact millions of Americans who have received coverage through the federal program.

Kevin is the News Director at WKU Public Radio. He has been with the station since 1999, and was previously the Assistant News Director, and also served as local host of Morning Edition.
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