President Obama's request to Congress for a three-year authorization to fight the Islamic State (ISIS) is a blueprint of the commander-in-chief's "schizophrenia" in running the nation, says John Sununu, former governor of New Hampshire and White House chief of staff to George H.W. Bush.
"What he sent to Congress requesting authorization is a blueprint of the schizophrenia that this president and this White House has over meeting their responsibilities for national security around the world," Sununu said Thursday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on
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"He wants to be seen as a pacifist who's aggressive or an aggressor who's a pacifist. This is ridiculous. There is more here that ties the hands of the chief executive than extends authority. The country would be better off without this particular piece of legislation.
"I hope there are enough Democrats in the Senate to join with the Republicans and send the president a useful piece of authorization so the hands of the chief executive are not tied and the U.S. can reject force and begin to take out this horrible scourge of ISIS that has created the horrors we've seen on television."
And what if Congress doesn't accept Obama's proposal and the president goes on to veto any other version proposed on Capitol Hill?
"Believe it or not, if he vetoes it, we're better off than having a bad one pass because the existing authorizations that are in place are still there," Sununu said
"They were broad enough, he's been operating under them, there is no real restriction on the utilization, even of ground forces there.
"If we were smart he would take advantage of the authorities he already has as president under the old authorizations. But this guy wants to try and have his cake and somebody else's cake at the same time."
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