No Enduring Offensive Combat Operations

In the sort of move that only president Obama and his people could come up with, he is sending a request for an Authorization For the Use of Military Force to Congress today.  Obama wants, in essence, a declaration of war against ISIS.  The AUMF allows the USA to attack ISIS all over the world, but here's where it's different from the past.  First, it expires in three years.  That's right; Obama wants us to declare a three year war against ISIS.  It is another of Obama's time limited wars.  First we had an end date in Iraq and then Afghanistan.  Our enemies knew that they just had to last until the end date and then Obama would stop fighting.  It hasn't worked before, and it is not a good idea now.  Second, the AUMF says that there can be no "enduring offensive combat operations".  Obama wants Congress to approve defensive operations and some sporadic offensive attacks only.  Can you imagine any war in which one side gives up most offensive operations by choice at the beginning of the conflict?  It's an insane formulation.  Why fight ISIS if we don't want to win and if we prohibit ourselves from sustained offensive action?

Congress should rewrite the AUMF.  Indeed, Congress ought to actually declare war against ISIS and stop with the nonsense.  During the Cold War, America stopped issuing declarations of war because of concern that such an official move might force the Soviet Union to side with out opponents in an active war.  That concern no longer exists.  We ought to be at war with ISIS, and it ought to be a real war.