Rep. Jim Jordan Calls for Congress to Debate Syria Military Action

Congress should debate authorizing military force in Syria, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said.

"If we're going to escalate this to a great degree, it seems to me you've got to have this debate in Congress," Jordan said Thursday on CNN's "New Day." "That's what the Constitution clearly spells out. Let's have that debate."

Having Congress issue an authorization for military force in Syria is "what the founders envisioned," Jordan said in the interview.

"They wanted a full debate so that the American people would be engaged, that the American people could weigh in through their directly elected representatives in Congress, and we could decide when this happens, how this happens," Jordan said.

"I also understand that what (Syrian President Bashar) Assad did, this is as evil and wrong as it gets and deserves some kind of response," Jordan added.

Allies of the U.S. have supported President Donald Trump's statement Syria would pay a "big price" if it is found to have released a chemical attack in Douma, a town held by rebels, CNN reported Tuesday.

• Trump: Syria Attack 'Could Be Very Soon or Not So Soon at All'
• Mattis: US 'Still Assessing' Use of Chemical Weapons in Syria