jct74
07-22-2013, 07:13 PM
Libertarian-Leaning Republicans Defy GOP Leadership on National Security
John Glaser, July 22, 2013
Libertarian-leaning Republicans are holding up a defense appropriations bill until they get amendments through that will block funding for any military operations in either Syria or Egypt and for dragnet-style NSA surveillance.
Representative Justin Amash (R-MI) is leading a group of fellow congressmen to amend the impending Defense Appropriations bill to include language “that would ban the NSA from collecting information from people who aren’t under investigation.”
...
Amash isn’t the only Republican sticking his neck out in a more libertarian direction on national security issues. His colleague Thomas Massie (R-KY) has introduced two amendments to the bill, according to Matt Fuller at Roll Call: “one that would defund military operations in Syria and one that would defund military operations in Egypt.”
And then there’s Utah’s Mike Lee over in the Senate, who “has voted against extending the Patriot Act and warrantless wiretapping,” writes Jim Antle. “He has also led the charge against the National Defense Authorization Act’s indefinite detention provision and supported accelerated troop withdrawals from Afghanistan.”
These GOPers are sometimes called Tea Party Republicans, but that name is thankfully going by the wayside. They explicitly align themselves with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who has been similarly unafraid to defy hawkish party conventions on national security.
Many purists accurately note that these libertarian-leaning congressmen are not completely satisfying on every issue. But their legislative defiance, so to speak, is miles away from where we were in the Bush years with the entire GOP toeing the line and frightened Democrats too scared to constructively dissent.
...
read more:
http://antiwar.com/blog/2013/07/22/libertarian-leaning-republicans-defy-gop-leadership-on-national-security/
John Glaser, July 22, 2013
Libertarian-leaning Republicans are holding up a defense appropriations bill until they get amendments through that will block funding for any military operations in either Syria or Egypt and for dragnet-style NSA surveillance.
Representative Justin Amash (R-MI) is leading a group of fellow congressmen to amend the impending Defense Appropriations bill to include language “that would ban the NSA from collecting information from people who aren’t under investigation.”
...
Amash isn’t the only Republican sticking his neck out in a more libertarian direction on national security issues. His colleague Thomas Massie (R-KY) has introduced two amendments to the bill, according to Matt Fuller at Roll Call: “one that would defund military operations in Syria and one that would defund military operations in Egypt.”
And then there’s Utah’s Mike Lee over in the Senate, who “has voted against extending the Patriot Act and warrantless wiretapping,” writes Jim Antle. “He has also led the charge against the National Defense Authorization Act’s indefinite detention provision and supported accelerated troop withdrawals from Afghanistan.”
These GOPers are sometimes called Tea Party Republicans, but that name is thankfully going by the wayside. They explicitly align themselves with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who has been similarly unafraid to defy hawkish party conventions on national security.
Many purists accurately note that these libertarian-leaning congressmen are not completely satisfying on every issue. But their legislative defiance, so to speak, is miles away from where we were in the Bush years with the entire GOP toeing the line and frightened Democrats too scared to constructively dissent.
...
read more:
http://antiwar.com/blog/2013/07/22/libertarian-leaning-republicans-defy-gop-leadership-on-national-security/