America's Role in Yemen's Agony Can End on Capitol Hill
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD MARCH 19, 2018
Excerpts:
Saudi Arabia’s powerful heir apparent, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is visiting Washington and other American cities this week promoting his image as an enlightened reformer out to modernize his conservative country and encourage foreign investment.
That image is stained by his chief foreign policy initiative, the humanitarian catastrophe that is the war in Yemen, in which at least 10,000 civilians have been killed, many as a result of indiscriminate airstrikes by the Saudis and their Persian Gulf partners. The United States has been Saudi Arabia’s main enabler, supplying weapons and other military aid.
Three senators, Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent; Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat; and Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, introduced the resolution to end America’s involvement in Yemen and curtail what they view as unchecked presidential warmaking powers. The administration and some lawmakers have been working against the measure in part because its 30-day deadline would force them to end a military operation they want to continue, and they fear it will ruin relations with Saudi Arabia.
While the deadline is abrupt, the resolution provides some flexibility: The date could be extended if the president requested that and Congress agreed. For too long, Congress has abdicated its role as America prolonged its stay in some wars and expanded into others. And presidents have been too reluctant to share these crucial decisions with lawmakers.
Resolutions like this can and must force serious debate and accountability.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/19/opinion/mohammed-bin-salman-america-yemen.html