Democratic lawmakers are furious that President Donald Trump has used the executive war powers that they expressly gave him to kill Qassem Soleimani.

Democrats overwhelmingly voted for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020 continuing the war powers for the president to engage in military actions without consulting Congress or depending on Congress for an Act of War.

“Sure, we voted to give the president the powers to kill military leaders without congressional authorization,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, “but we didn’t think he’d actually use those powers! This is a total abuse of power that we expressly authorized.”

Democrats also rejected a bill introduced by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard to force the president to consult Congress before taking military action:

Requiring the President to seek congressional authorization prior to any engagement of the United States Armed Forces against any adversary.

But legislators were surprised when Trump didn’t consult Congress before taking military action in a warzone.

“I’m just baffled as to why President Trump thinks he can just drone bomb people in the Middle East since we gave him that exact authority,” Pelosi added. “What, does he actually read the bills we pass?”

About Author