US Senate defeats bill hitting Obama on Libya

[ProSense]

US Senate defeats bill hitting Obama on Libya

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US Senate on Tuesday easily swept aside a symbolic but politically potent measure declaring that President Barack Obama's decision to intervene militarily in Libya violated the US Constitution.

Lawmakers voted 90-10 to table, or kill, a resolution by Republican Senator Rand Paul that attacked Obama using his own words about the US Congress's constitutional prerogative to declare war.

The measure recycled Obama's contention in 2007 when he was a senator and White House contender that "the president does not have power under the Constitution to unilaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that does not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation."

<...>

The vote was the US Senate's second on Libya: On March 1 it unanimously passed a non-binding resolution urging the world impose a no-fly zone over Libya and Moamer Kadhafi's bloody crackdown on protests against his rule.

Roll Call

YEAs ---90
Akaka (D-HI)
Alexander (R-TN)
Ayotte (R-NH)
Barrasso (R-WY)
Baucus (D-MT)
Begich (D-AK)
Bennet (D-CO)
Bingaman (D-NM)
Blumenthal (D-CT)
Blunt (R-MO)
Boozman (R-AR)
Boxer (D-CA)
Brown (D-OH)
Brown (R-MA)
Burr (R-NC)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Chambliss (R-GA)
Coats (R-IN)
Coburn (R-OK)
Cochran (R-MS)
Conrad (D-ND)
Coons (D-DE)
Corker (R-TN)
Cornyn (R-TX)
Crapo (R-ID)
Durbin (D-IL)
Enzi (R-WY)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Franken (D-MN)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Graham (R-SC)
Grassley (R-IA)
Hagan (D-NC)
Harkin (D-IA)
Hatch (R-UT)
Hoeven (R-ND)
Hutchison (R-TX)
Inhofe (R-OK)
Inouye (D-HI)
Isakson (R-GA)
Johanns (R-NE)
Johnson (D-SD)
Kerry (D-MA)
Kirk (R-IL)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Kohl (D-WI)
Kyl (R-AZ)
Landrieu (D-LA)
Lautenberg (D-NJ)
Leahy (D-VT)
Levin (D-MI)
Lieberman (ID-CT)
Lugar (R-IN)
Manchin (D-WV)
McCain (R-AZ)
McCaskill (D-MO)
McConnell (R-KY)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Mikulski (D-MD)
Murkowski (R-AK)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Nelson (D-NE)
Portman (R-OH)
Pryor (D-AR)
Reed (D-RI)
Reid (D-NV)
Risch (R-ID)
Roberts (R-KS)
Rockefeller (D-WV)
Rubio (R-FL)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schumer (D-NY)
Shaheen (D-NH)
Shelby (R-AL)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Thune (R-SD)
Udall (D-CO)
Udall (D-NM)
Vitter (R-LA)
Warner (D-VA)
Webb (D-VA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wicker (R-MS)
Wyden (D-OR)

NAYs ---10
Collins (R-ME)
DeMint (R-SC)
Ensign (R-NV)
Johnson (R-WI)
Lee (R-UT)
Moran (R-KS)
Paul (R-KY)
Sessions (R-AL)
Snowe (R-ME)
Toomey (R-PA)

[vaberella]

1. Collins, Snowe...and even Ensign---you three know better. Good Lord!

Especially Collins and Snowe.

[Mass]

26. They are afraid of the Tea Party in Maine...\nt

[gateley]

2. It's refreshing that some in the Senate will actually vote the Right Way, rather

than just following the lead. Actually, quite a few -- I'm surprised by some at some of the names.

[bluestateguy]

3. Bernie Sanders voted yes! Bernie Sanders voted yes!

See see! Look look look!

[karynnj]

5. Bernie Seanders was a co-sponsor of Menedez's resolution that passed on March 1 that

was in favor of a UN no fly zone. (The bill was non binding, but taking the step to co-sponsor it means something.)

[bluestateguy]

7. I really do like Bernie Sanders

He's a solid progressive, but he also lives in the real world.

[Ter]

10. I know, I'm disgusted

n/t

[Dokkie]

4. Thats Australian

For Bipartisanship.

[kirby]

6. .

[zbdent]

8. the "yeas" by Republicans are probably because

they're afraid that President fill-in-the-blank Republican would face that issue of "constitutionality" when the Iran occupation begins in June 2013 ...

as if the "liberally biased media" would ever even timidly suggest that it might not be totally and 100 percent justified ...

[Blaukraut]

9. The two assholes from Maine have got to go

Hopefully Maine will have had enough of republicans and teabaggers to finally vote for Democrats for the US Senate. What a waste of human skin those two ignorant cows are!

[Ter]

11. That fraud Teo-Con Marco Rubio once again proves he's just a neo-con

A Teo-Con, btw, is a neo-con masquerading as a Tea Bagger.

[ClarkUSA]

12. It's INTERESTING that there were many echos of Rand Paul's attack MO against Pres. Obama here.

Very interesting.

[hulka38]

13. It's just another indictment on the Democratic Party.

I'm not sure why you'd want to call attention to this.

[ClarkUSA]

14. Why? Because Senate Dems defeated Rand Paul the Teabagger Poster Boy's stupid bill?

Did you support Rand Paul's effort? If so, "I'm not sure why you'd want to call attention to this."

[hulka38]

15. The way the military campaign was launched in Libya

reinforces a very bad precedent wrt presidential power. I felt this way before I knew of Paul's stance and I feel the same way now. I would have felt the same with Bush in the WH or some other Republican in the future.

[ClarkUSA]

16. Spare me the outrage. Rand Paul's politically-motivated bill was a fool's errand.

I'm glad the grown-ups shot it down. It won't stop the RW talking points though, will it?

[Name removed]

17. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Union Scribe]

18. Great post.

But it will fall on dear, er, eyes I guess. It's always a game to political hacks.

[ProSense]

19. Oh please.

Rand Paul is about as serious as a fucking clown.

You think the Senators who voted against his politically motivated bill aren't serious?

[hulka38]

21. I think that almost every vote in the senate

is primarily motivated by politics. On both sides. Speeches in the chamber aren't even listened to by members anymore. Nobody's there. You don't think senate Dems felt pressure to stand by their Rey on a matter of war the day after he launched his reelection campaign. Who are you crapping?

[ClarkUSA]

23. Yeah, Rand Paul is a "very serious" Constitutional scholar when he's not praying to Aqua Buddha.

:rofl:

[hulka38]

24. LMAO - save and archive that one.

THAT IS A KEEPER!

[Ter]

28. I dunno about Rand, but his father said Bush's wars were un-Constitutional as well

Can't a person put aside politics for a second and believe they were all illegal?

[joshcryer]

30. The President acted within the laws as they are written. He is the Commander in Chief...

...the head of our military. He did not violate the constitution.

[Mass]

27. Or there is a reason why only the Tea Party crazy voted for it?

One that escapes you and me, but that is real. I do not see Sanders voting against this if this was as outrageous as it seems.

[rpannier]

20. 10 No's

We now know who the real crazies are

[ClarkUSA]

22. "the real crazies" are not all in the Senate, either

[Mass]

25. Interesting to see that some people here side with the far right.

[11 Bravo]

29. How curious that Maine's two "moderate" Repugs both voted "no". Face it, folks ...

"moderate Republican" is an oxymoron. Both of those women saw that doughy doofus LePage get elected Governor, and are now petrified that they can be teabagged. To appease the baggers they will go as hard right as they need to. A pox on both of them!

[Arkana]

31. Bernie Sanders voted to kill it. Curious.

DeMint, Toomey, Paul, and Sessions voted against it because they're against everything Obama does no matter what. Seriously, if Obama proposed a law that said all people should breathe oxygen, these chuckleheads would vote against it.