War Waffing in House

ACongress whose majority has been unsparing in faulting President Clinton for confusion and bumbling in his conduct of foreign policy is having its own troubles deciding what it wants to do about the campaign to end Yugoslavia’s repression of ethnic Albanians in its Kosovo province. Consider:

On Wednesday, the House overwhelmingly rejected a proposal by Tom Campbell (R-San Jose) to invoke the never-used 1973 War Powers Resolution and require the immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces from the war. Does that mean the House approves of the use of American bombing to punish Yugoslavia for its crimes? Not necessarily.

Given the chance to express itself plainly, the House on a surprising tie vote refused to back last month’s Senate resolution authorizing the air war. But that does not mean there is no majority in favor of pressing on with the bombing. Thursday the Appropriations Committee approved an emergency defense spending measure that includes $6 billion to fund the bombing effort through September, if need be. The full House is expected to concur next week. So where does the House stand on the air war? It refuses to demand its end, but it also refuses to go on record to support it. It will, however, continue to pay for it. In sum, the House squishily finds itself on all sides of the issue.

On one point at least the House is determined. A substantial bipartisan majority insists that Clinton must get prior congressional approval before ordering U.S. “ground elements” to fight in Kosovo. Clinton has said he would be happy to consult with Congress on that, though a White House official also candidly stated that if Clinton did decide ground forces were needed he would send them in, with or without legislative authorization. That would dare Congress to cut off funding for troops already in the field, a political risk that Congress shied from even in the bitterest days of the Vietnam War.

Many Republicans, with an eye on next year’s electoral campaign, have taken to labeling the conflict with Yugoslavia the Clinton-Gore war. Still, as the Senate vote endorsing the air war showed, the GOP is far from unanimous in trying to steer clear of taking on any responsibility for what happens in the Balkans.

That there is unease in Congress and in the country over NATO’s intervention is obvious and understandable, and it has not been helped by Pentagon and NATO briefers who insist that the war is being won but fail to deliver convincing evidence. Recent involvements in other people’s internal conflicts have not been noted for their success. That there is much to be questioned and criticized about how NATO and the Clinton administration are fighting this war is plain. But the humanitarian basis for intervention to try to halt the outrages committed against the Kosovar Albanians remains honorable and compelling.

It is too early to dismiss the air war as ineffective or futile. It should be pursued, even as efforts to seek a credible diplomatic way out are encouraged. The foremost goal of a settlement remains what it has been from the start: to allow the Kosovars who have been driven from their homes to return, under effective international protection.