Sen. John McCain said Congress should authorize the use of military force, even though President Donald Trump had the authority to carry out any strikes against Syria after the latest chemical weapons attack by President Bashar al-Assad.
"We need an authorization for use of military force," the Arizona Republican told "MTP Daily" on MSNBC. "We've got to update it, we've got to make it realistic — and we've got to have Congress, the representatives of the American people, involved in some of these decisions."
McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he was going to work with panel Democrat, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, "and others to try to come up with one."
He added, however, President Trump did not need to seek congressional approval to strike Damascus after Assad's forces carried out the attack late Monday that killed more than 80 people.
"I don't think he needs congressional approval," McCain said, noting the Reagan administration's effort against dictator Muammar Gaddafi in Libya in 1986.
"No more than Ronald Reagan was after the Berlin bombing when he struck Gaddafi," McCain told reporters at the Capitol, The Hill reported. "He has no more requirement than Ronald Reagan did."
Asked whether Trump had the authority to strike Syria, McCain replied: "I do. Certainly no one complained when Ronald Reagan did it."
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