Can Boneheaded Florida Republican Tom Rooney Keep Us Out Of War In Syria?

There isn't much good to say about wealthy dog track owner and Republican Tom Rooney, who represents a huge rural chunk of central Florida southwest of Orlando, east of Tampa Bay and north of Fort Myers-- FL-17, basically Highlands, Glades, Okeechobee, Charlotte, Hardee, DeSoto counties and bits of Polk, Manatee, Hillsborough and Lee counties. He got into Congress by beating scandal-ridden Blue Dog Tim Mahoney (who only managed to win because of the Tom Foley scandal). Since being elected in 2008, Rooney's ProgressivePunch score is a dismal 3.01 (out of 100). He's made a name for him as a virulent Islamaphobe and came to the national attention for his vicious, boneheaded and McCarthyite attacks on Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin. He's also known as the anti-Justin Amash, attacking the libertarian congressman from Michigan who stands up for things Rooney doesn't care about (like the Constitution and individual rights). No one in Congress takes him seriously except his pals, Louie Gohmert, Michele Bachmann, Trent Franks and Lynn Westmoreland.

For some reason, Rooney sends me his constituents newsletter. I have no idea why. I usually just delete it unread but the subject line this week-- "New Bill to Block Military Action in Syria"-- made me open it. He did, I recall, try to stop funding for Lindsey Graham's and John McCain's war in Libya. Let's see what he's doing to thwart the bloodthirsty pair in Syria.

Last week, I asked for your opinion on whether we should provide military assistance to the rebels in Syria. I appreciate you taking the time to share your opinions with me. You can view the full results of the survey here.

By overwhelming margins, many of you expressed grave concerns, which I share, with providing arms to Syrian rebels, who have been infiltrated by al Qaeda. As a whole, respondents were strongly opposed to putting the lives our troops at risk by enforcing a no-fly zone or putting boots on the ground in Syria.

Today, I joined with my colleague Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas to introduce new legislation prohibiting the Administration from taking military action in Syria, including providing weapons or other support to warring factions, without first receiving Congressional authorization.

We must ask ourselves: What is the goal of providing weapons to the rebels? We know that the rebels have been infiltrated by al Qaeda and some of the same people we’ve been fighting for the last 10 years. Senior administration officials have told me, as a member of the House Intelligence and Appropriations Committees, that they can’t give any assurance that our weapons won’t wind up in the hands of al Qaeda. So what is our endgame?

If the President wants to take us into Syria, he needs to come to Congress and convince us. The President needs to make a convincing case that this is in our national security interest, and he needs to lay out a clear and comprehensive mission, including an exit strategy. He hasn’t done that yet.

Our bill, the “Congressional Accountability and Oversight in Syria Act,” would prohibit the Administration from providing weapons or other support to any faction in Syria without first receiving explicit authorization from Congress. It further prohibits the Administration from exercising American military force in Syria, including but not limited to enforcing a no-fly zone or putting American boots on the ground, without Congressional authorization, consistent with the War Powers Resolution. You can read the full bill text here.

What do you think? If you agree that President Obama should not bring the United States into a civil war in Syria without Congressional authorization, please take a moment to share this email with a friend or family member... share it on Facebook or Twitter.

“What is the goal," asked Rooney, "of providing weapons to the rebels? We know that the rebels have been infiltrated by al Qaeda and some of the same people we’ve been fighting for the last 10 years. Senior administration officials have told me they can’t give any assurance that our weapons won’t wind up in the hands of al Qaeda. So what’s our endgame? If the President wants to take us into Syria, he needs to come to Congress and convince us. The President needs to make a convincing case that this is in our national security interest, and he needs to lay out a clear and comprehensive mission, including an exit strategy. He hasn’t done that yet.”

Rooney may be boneheaded and pernicious but he's also right on this. John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Ed Royce, Eliot Engel and John Kerry are pushing Obama towards a war no one in America-- outside of Likud supporters-- wants. Congress needs to stop them-- and stop them fast.