Today, Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) sent the following letters to House Speaker John Boehner and President Barack Obama calling on Congress to return to Washington in order to address the ongoing crisis in Iraq. (Please find below and attached a copy of the letters).
August 14, 2014
The Honorable John A. Boehner
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
H-232 The Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Speaker Boehner:
I respectfully call upon you to bring Congress back into session so that we may meet our constitutional responsibility to address the ongoing crisis in Iraq. As you know, the situation there is becoming increasingly more complex and continues to defy easy resolution.
There is no doubt that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) will continue to terrorize the people of Iraq, leading to an increase in the tens of thousands of Iraqi Christian, Yazidi and other refugees who have been driven from their homes. However, we in Congress have a responsibility to make sure that America is not dragged into another ongoing military endeavor in Iraq. Although the current airstrikes may have stopped ISIS momentarily, we still have a responsibility under our Article I powers to delineate and impose a timeframe for these efforts as we move forward.
The situation in Iraq on a political, humanitarian and military level is increasingly dire, and we may very well have a duty to meet these difficulties with force along with any number of other strategic responses, but we certainly have a duty to meet as a body at the earliest possible date to discuss these issues and act accordingly under the United States Constitution and the War Powers Resolution.
I thank you for your time and consideration of my request and ask for a prompt response.
Sincerely,
Alcee L. Hastings
Member of Congress
August 14, 2014
The Honorable Barack H. Obama
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Dear President Obama:
I write to inform you that I sent the attached letter to Speaker Boehner today, calling on him to bring the U.S. House of Representatives back into session so that we may address the crisis in Iraq.
The situation in Iraq on a political, humanitarian and military level is increasingly dire, and we may very well have a duty to meet these difficulties with force along with any number of other strategic responses, but we, as Members of Congress, certainly have a duty to meet as a body at the earliest possible date to discuss these issues and act accordingly under the United States Constitution and the War Powers Resolution.
I certainly appreciate your timely attention to the complex and difficult situation unfolding in Iraq, and want you to know that I am eager to facilitate a resolution to the current crisis by making sure the Legislative and Executive branches of our government work in unison to achieve an acceptable outcome for the American and Iraqi people.
I thank you for your time and attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Alcee L. Hastings
Member of Congress
Congressman Alcee L. Hastings serves as Senior Member of the House Rules Committee, Ranking Democratic Member of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, and Co-Chairman of the Florida Delegation.
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