Editing War Powers Resolution (section)

===Syria, 2012–2017===
{{See also|2017 Shayrat missile strike|Syrian Train and Equip Program|Timber Sycamore}}
In late 2012 or early 2013, at the direction of U.S. President [[Barack Obama]], the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA) was put in charge of [[Timber Sycamore]], a covert program to arm and train the rebels who were fighting against [[Syria]]n [[President of Syria|President]] [[Bashar al-Assad]],<ref>{{cite news|url= https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-to-give-some-syria-rebels-ability-to-call-airstrikes-1424208053 |title=U.S. to Give Some Syria Rebels Ability to Call Airstrikes |work= The Wall Street Journal |date=February 17, 2015 |access-date=February 17, 2015 |last1=Barnes|first1=Julian E. |last2=Entous |first2=Adam |url-access=subscription}}</ref> while the State Department supplied the [[Free Syrian Army]] with non-lethal aid. Following the [[use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War]] on several occasions, including the [[Ghouta chemical attack]] on 21 August 2013, Obama asked Congress for authorization to use military force in Syria, which Congress rejected. Instead, Congress passed a bill that specified that the Defense Secretary was authorized "...to provide assistance, including training, equipment, supplies, and sustainment, to appropriately vetted elements of the Syrian opposition and other appropriately vetted Syrian groups and individuals...." The bill specifically prohibited the introduction of U.S. troops or other U.S. forces into hostilities. The bill said: "Nothing in this section shall be construed to constitute a specific statutory authorization for the introduction of United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into situations wherein hostilities are clearly indicated by the circumstances."<ref>{{USPL|113|164}}</ref>

In spite of the prohibition, Obama, and later U.S. President [[Donald Trump]], introduced ground forces into Syria, and the United States became fully engaged in the country, though these troops were primarily for training allied forces. On April 6, 2017, the United States launched 59 [[Tomahawk (missile family)|BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles]] at Shayrat airbase in Syria in response to Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons. Constitutional scholar and law professor [[Stephen Vladeck]] has noted that the strike potentially violated the War Powers Resolution.<ref>{{cite news|title=Was Trump's Syria Strike Legal? An Expert Weighs In|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/07/politics/was-trump-syria-strike-legal/|access-date=7 April 2017}}</ref>