[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 196 (Wednesday, December 12, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S7456]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 YEMEN

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, later on, the Senate may consider a 
resolution by the junior Senators from Utah and Vermont that pertains 
to the situation in Yemen. In effect, these Members want to end the 
limited American assistance to the Saudi-led coalition that is 
supporting the U.N.-recognized government in the civil war in Yemen.
  I will oppose the motion to proceed to the Sanders-Lee resolution and 
would urge Members to join me in voting against it. Members on both 
sides have legitimate concerns about the war in Yemen, about the U.S. 
interests tangled up in this conflict, and especially about the 
horrible plight of Yemeni citizens who are caught in the crossfire. And 
where Saudi Arabia is concerned, I think every single Member of this 
body shares grave concerns about the murder of Khashoggi and wants 
accountability. We also want to preserve a 70-year partnership between 
the United States and Saudi Arabia, and we want to ensure that it 
continues to serve American interests and stabilizes a dangerous and 
critical region.
  This is the backdrop for today's debate: challenging circumstances 
that require the Senate to act with prudence and precision. But the 
Sanders-Lee resolution is neither precise enough nor prudent enough.
  For one thing, I do not believe the resolution should be privileged 
under the War Powers Act. The United States is not involved in combat. 
It is not dropping ordnance. It is no longer even providing air-to-air 
refueling. As I have stated previously, even if these activities 
continued, it is a far cry to equate them with ``hostilities.'' 
Regardless, the practice has already stopped.
  If the Senate wants to pick a constitutional fight with the executive 
branch over war powers, I would advise my colleagues to pick a better 
case.
  Second, their resolution is an inappropriate vehicle. There are more 
careful ways the Senate could express its concern about the conflict in 
Yemen or our partnership with Saudi Arabia without taking such a blunt 
instrument to the policy in this area. Indeed, this resolution would 
threaten other support the United States is providing that is designed 
to improve coalition targeting and limit civilian casualties.
  Finally, from the Senate's perspective, considering a War Powers Act 
resolution has the potential to present a lengthy, messy process when 
our calendar is already packed more than full with other important 
business to complete for the American people.
  This resolution's shortcomings do not mean the Senate must do 
nothing. There is a better option at hand. Legislation introduced by 
Chairman Corker does a good job capturing bipartisan concerns about 
both the war in Yemen and the behavior of our Saudi partners more 
broadly without triggering an extended debate over war powers while we 
hasten to finish all our other work. I have cosponsored his 
legislation. It is a superior road to the outcome that most Senators 
want. So I urge every Member to vote against considering the Sanders-
Lee resolution later today and join me in supporting Chairman Corker's 
responsible alternative.

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