President Donald Trumpauthorized retaliatory strikes in Syria on Friday, in response to an alleged chemical attack launched by President Bashar al-Assad outside of Damascus, which killed more than 40 civilians.
That same day, Democratic Rep. Jerrold Nadler (NY) revisited Trump’s old tweets, in which he chastised former President Barack Obama for ordering airstrikes on Syria without congressional approval, after Trump did the exact same thing.
Trump tweeted in August 2013, “The President must get Congressional approval before attacking Syria-big mistake if he does not!”
Another tweet from that same time period read, “What will we get for bombing Syria besides more debt and a possible long term conflict? Obama needs Congressional approval.”
While Nadler said that he agreed with Trump, calling Assad a “monster who committed war crimes against his own people,” he said that Trump still needed congressional approval before the measure could move forward.
Nadler tweeted, “As I said in 2013, under Pres. Obama, Constitution requires congressional authorization for use of military force in Syria. Previous 9/11-related authorization doesn’t cover strike on Syrian gov’t. @realDonaldTrump's actions tonight appear to be unlawful if not unconstitutional.”
According to The Hill, Vice President Mike Pence made calls to congressional leaders on Friday to notify them about the airstrikes, including Speaker Paul Ryan, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
