What Rand Paul Talks About When He Talks About Declaring War on the Islamic State
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) speaks at an election rally for U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) at Bowman Field November 3, 2014 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty ImagesU.S. Senator Rand Paul once proposed cutting all foreign aid from the federal budget. Then he penned an column titled, "I Am Not An Isolationist." Now, he's introduced a declaration of war on a group the United States has already been bombing for months.
Paul's resolution, introduced Wednesday, would declare war on the Islamic State, which has already been the target of more than 1,120 air strikes in Iraq and Syria that dropped 2,770 munitions since missions started Aug. 8. But Paul, a Kentucky Republican considering a presidential campaign in 2016, voted against arming and training fighters in Syria and has claimed that the military action underway is illegal.