US Troop Withdrawal Request Fails

(UnitedVoice.com) – Former President Barack Obama ordered an intervention in Syria in 2014. American troops have been stationed in the country for more than eight years. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) recently introduced a resolution to withdraw all US forces from the Middle Eastern nation, but it was soundly defeated.

On March 8, the House of Representatives voted 321 to 103 against the War Powers Act resolution. There are currently less than 1,000 American troops in Syria. They are there to fight the Islamic State, which has been largely dismantled in recent years but is still a threat. The Associated Press reported Gaetz argued that he didn’t think “900 Americans who have been sent to this hellscape with no definition of victory” are what is stopping a resurgence of the Islamic State.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) objected to the resolution on the House floor. He told his colleagues that allowing the troops to remain in Syria doesn’t mean the US is at war with the Middle Eastern nation. The military “is conducting limited but important counterterrorism operations.”

Forty-seven Republicans and 56 Democrats voted in favor of Gaetz’s resolution.

Legislation directing Pres Biden to remove 900 U.S. troops from Syria (from Syrian Kurdish cities) in 180 days was soundly defeated in the House. Res introduced by Rep Gaetz, voted down 321-103.
47 Rep and 56 Dem lawmakers voted for the bill https://t.co/kNJnNWg6IF

— ilhan tanir (@WashingtonPoint) March 10, 2023

Gaetz’s resolution was part of a wider effort to pull back war powers from the executive branch and give it back to the legislative branch. The Constitution gives Congress the responsibility to declare war. However, in recent decades, that power has been eroded, and several presidents have used old authorizations to unilaterally involve Americans in foreign conflicts.

After the vote, Gaetz issued a statement condemning the decision. He said there was “no role” for the US in Syria. He went on to say American troops have “tried to build a democracy out of sand, blood, and Arab militants” in the Middle East. Though the vote failed, he said his battle to put a stop to the never-ending wars had just started.