U.S. Rep. Howard Coble has joined with nine other members of the House in filing a lawsuit against President Obama for taking military action against Libya without the authorization of Congress.
Coble, a Republican whose 6th District includes part of Rowan County, said he joined the lawsuit because he believes the president should have consulted with the House and Senate before the strikes against Libya began.
“President Obama committed a salient miscalculation in violation of the War Powers Act by failing to obtain congressional authority prior to having gone into Libya,” Coble said in a press release. “I think the president should have requested congressional authority as President Bush did on his invasion of Iraq. That wasn’t done, and to furthermore complicate the matter, we don’t know the identity of the rebels in Libya. They may be friends of ours; they may well be al-Qaeda forces.”
Coble said under the War Powers Act, the president is required to get congressional authority within 90 days, and that deadline is Sunday.
“We may be in a lose-lose regardless of what we do,” Coble said about the situation in Libya, “but I’m getting tired of funding money by the billions and then seeing our people come back either dead or disabled for life.”
The lawsuit is being handled by George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley.