DEFENSE/JAMES MATTIS/MILITARY/REX TILLERSON/STATE: “U.S. lawmakers will grill top Trump administration officials on Monday [10-30-17] about a new authorization for the use of military force in the campaign against Islamic State and other militant groups, Congress’ most significant step in years toward taking back control of its constitutional right to authorize war.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis will testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at a hearing on the administration’s view of a new Authorization for the Use of Military Force, known by the acronym AUMF.
Republican and Democratic members of Congress have been arguing for years that Congress ceded too much authority over the deployment of U.S. forces to the White House after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. They are also divided over how much control they should exert over the Pentagon. Repeated efforts to write and pass a new AUMF have failed…
Under the Constitution, Congress, not the president, has the right to declare war.”
-Patricia Zengerle, “As militant threats shift, U.S. Senate revives war authorization debate,” Reuters, Oct. 29, 2017 10:05pm