House condemns Trump’s Syria withdrawal
In a stinging bipartisan rebuke, the House on Wednesday condemned President Donald Trump's withdrawal of U.S. troops from northern Syria.
Voting 354 to 60, lawmakers approved a non-binding resolution opposing the move, which set the stage for Turkey's military assault against Kurdish forces in Syria that the U.S. partnered with to beat back Islamic State terrorists.
The withdrawal last week drew scorn from both parties, who contend the U.S. is abandoning its Kurdish allies, undermining the fight against ISIS and spurring a humanitarian catastrophe.
"What kind of message does this send to the world? How can America be trusted to keep its word when we betray one of our close partners?" House Foreign Affairs Chairman Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) asked on the House floor. "Congress must speak out against this disgrace."
The top Republican on the Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, said he understood Trump's "legitimate concerns" about committing troops overseas, but said the president's Syria pullout had damaged U.S. interests in the region.
"I, too, want to wind down our overseas conflicts and bring our troops home," McCaul said. "But leaving [northeast] Syria now does not resolve the problem that brought us there in the first place. It only creates more."
"We need a residual force in place," he added. "The consequences of this decision have already unfolded before our very eyes."
The resolution is non-binding and doesn't condemn Trump by name. It calls on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to halt Turkey's military campaign in Syria and urges humanitarian support to displaced Syrian Kurds and calls on the U.S. to ensure Turkey "acts with restraint and respects existing agreements related to Syria."
The resolution also urges the Trump administration to outline "a clear and specific plan for the enduring defeat of ISIS."
Amid bipartisan pressure, the president announced sanctions against Turkey on Monday and is slated to meet with congressional leaders later Wednesday. Trump has also dispatched Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to meet with Erdoğan to help broker a ceasefire.
Still, Trump staunchly defended his decision to withdraw troops and slammed the Kurds as "not angels" in remarks Wednesday in the Oval Office.
"The Kurds know how to fight, and as I said, they're not angels,” Trump told reporters.
Both the House and Senate are also weighing sanctions of their own against Turkey amid chaos in the region.
Engel and McCaul are offering legislation that would sanction senior Turkish officials involved in the invasion, bar weapons transfers to Turkish forces in Syria and require Trump to impose sanctions on Turkey for its acquisition of a Russian missile system.
Additionally, House Republicans, led by Conference Chair Liz Cheney of Wyoming, have introduced legislation that would bar U.S. arms sales to Turkey as well as impose sanctions against Erdoğan and other key Turkish leaders.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) also plan to roll out a sanctions package on Thursday.
Syrian Kurdish militias have now aligned with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to fend off the Turkish invasion.
The military offensive is also the latest in an increasingly fraught U.S. partnership with Turkey, which is a NATO ally.
The U.S. removed Turkey from its F-35 fighter program after Ankara accepted delivery of the Russian-made S-400 missile system after both lawmakers and administration officials had warned against the acquisition.
