Title: Directing the President pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers Resolution to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the Syrian Arab Republic that have not been authorized by Congress.
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
This concurrent resolution directs the President to remove the Armed Forces from hostilities in Syria within 30 days, except for forces engaged in operations authorized by Congress on September 18, 2001.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 70 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 70

  Directing the President pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers 
Resolution to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the 
    Syrian Arab Republic that have not been authorized by Congress.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 31, 2019

 Ms. Gabbard submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Directing the President pursuant to section 5(c) of the War Powers 
Resolution to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the 
    Syrian Arab Republic that have not been authorized by Congress.

    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),

SECTION 1. REMOVAL OF UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES FROM HOSTILITIES IN 
              THE SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC THAT HAVE NOT BEEN AUTHORIZED BY 
              CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Congress has the sole power to declare war under 
        article I, section 8 of the Constitution.
            (2) Congress has not declared war with respect to, or 
        provided any specific statutory authorization for, United 
        States military participation in any activity related to 
        securing, guarding, possessing, profiting off of, or developing 
        oil fields in northern Syria. All of these actions are 
        unconstitutional.
            (3) President Donald Trump stated on October 27, 2019 
        regarding Syria that ``we are leaving soldiers to secure the 
        oil. Now, we may have to fight for the oil. That's OK. Maybe 
        somebody else wants the oil, in which case they have a hell of 
        a fight.'' And that ``it can help us, because we should be able 
        to take some also. And what I intend to do, perhaps, is make a 
        deal with an ExxonMobil or one of our great companies to go in 
        there and do it properly. Right now it's not big. It's big oil 
        underground but it's not big oil up top.''.
            (4) The Secretary of Defense, Mark Esper, stated on October 
        28, 2019, regarding oil in Syria that ``US troops will remain 
        positioned in this strategic area to deny ISIS access those 
        vital resources. And we will respond with overwhelming military 
        force against any group that threatens the safety of our forces 
        there.''. Secretary Esper confirmed that this includes denying 
        access to the oil from Russian and Syrian forces.
            (5) Oil, natural resources, and land in Syria belong to the 
        Syrian people, not the United States.
            (6) Depriving the Syrian people from the economic benefit 
        of their natural resources will inhibit them from rebuilding 
        their country. It is not humane or in the national security 
        interests of the United States for the Syrian Arab Republic to 
        be an unstable or failed state. An unstable or failed Syrian 
        state further proliferates the presence of terrorist 
        organizations like al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria, and 
        significantly deteriorates the humanitarian condition of the 
        Syrian people.
            (7) Section 8(c) of the War Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 
        1547(c)) defines the introduction of United States Armed Forces 
        to include ``the assignment of members of such armed forces to 
        command, coordinate, participate in the movement of, or 
        accompany the regular or irregular military forces of any 
        foreign country or government when such military forces are 
        engaged, or there exists an imminent threat that such forces 
        will become engaged, in hostilities.''.
    (b) Removal of Armed Forces.--Pursuant to section 5(c) of the War 
Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 1544(c)), Congress hereby directs the 
President to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities in the 
Syrian Arab Republic, except United States Armed Forces engaged in 
operations authorized under the Authorization for Use of Military Force 
(Public Law 107-40; 50 U.S.C. 1541 note), not later than 30 days after 
the date of the adoption of this concurrent resolution unless and until 
a declaration of war or specific authorization for such use of United 
States Armed Forces has been enacted into law.
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