McConnell on Yemen Resolution: I Urge My Colleagues to Uphold the President’s Veto
‘In March the Senate narrowly passed a resolution that would have misused the War Powers Act and actually hampered U.S. efforts to help bring the conflict in Yemen to a close. Fortunately the president vetoed it. And so today, members will have a second chance to send the right message regarding America’s commitments to our partners in the region, to important humanitarian missions, and to eradicating al-Qaeda from the Arabian peninsula.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) made the following remarks on the Senate floor regarding a Senate resolution that would have misused the War Powers Act in Yemen and has since been vetoed by President Trump:
“In March the Senate narrowly passed a resolution that would have misused the War Powers Act and actually hampered U.S. efforts to help bring the conflict in Yemen to a close. Fortunately the president vetoed it. And so today, members will have a second chance to send the right message regarding America’s commitments to our partners in the region, to important humanitarian missions, and to eradicating al-Qaeda from the Arabian peninsula.
“I urge my colleagues to vote to uphold the president’s veto. The resolution before us starts from false premises. We are not parties to the civil war in Yemen. We are no longer providing air-to-air refueling. More important, the resolution would make it more difficult to prevent the loss of innocent lives.
“This resolution would require U.S. advisors to cease training and intelligence sharing operations that help pilots avoid civilian casualties. And it would dry up U.S. non-combat support to the weakened, U.N.-recognized government in Yemen. The resolution would also create serious new problems for the U.N.-led diplomatic mission that’s doing all it can to negotiate an end to the bloodshed.
“Abandoning our Yemeni, Emirati, and Saudi partners just as diplomatic efforts are starting to make progress is hardly the way to give them the confidence to take the hard diplomatic steps that are necessary. An abrupt withdrawal of U.S. support for the coalition would be good news for Iran, for the Houthi rebels they support, and for al-Qaeda.
“I share many of my colleagues’ serious concerns about aspects of Saudi Arabia’s behavior. But the best way for us to encourage better behavior from our partners is to remain involved with Saudi Arabia and the UAE, not push them away into the arms of Russia and China. The War Powers Act is a blunt tool, and not at all the right vehicle to productively or diplomatically express concern about the behavior of close partners of the United States.
“The Senate passed a more nuanced resolution in December of last year, and it has many other tools to register concern and disapproval. If Senators want to play a productive role in this conflict, I encourage them to meet with Saudi, Emirati, and Yemeni officials, to travel to the region, and to hold hearings on this important matter. But for all the reasons I’ve laid out, this particular resolution is a particularly bad idea. I urge each of my colleagues to join me in setting it aside and upholding the president’s veto.”
Related Issues: War on Terror
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