Senator to propose authorization to hit militants
- Washington 09/16/2014 by Donna Cassata (AP)

Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine has drawn up legislation to authorize U.S. military force against Islamic extremists that would strictly limit the engagement of American ground forces.

The Virginia senator, who is a member of both the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees, proposes repealing the 2002 authorization that two presidents have cited as their authority for military operations in Iraq.

Kaine's measure calls for all necessary and appropriate force to defeat the Islamic State militants as the president determines, including airstrikes and training and equipping certain Syrian rebels.

It bars the use of American ground forces except for rescue missions and limited operations against high-value targets. The authorization would last for a year.