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Senate Panel Votes 10-7 To Authorize Force In Syria

Update 3:30 p.m.: The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has voted 10 to 7 in favor of a resolution authorizing the use of force against Syria. No votes included Kentucky Republican Rand Paul, Florida Republican Marco Rubio and New Mexico Democrat Tom Udall.

There hasn’t been a formal debate about the use of military force in the U.S. Congress since the Iraq War.

Yesterday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee opened that debate again, responding to President Obama’s request for authorization to launch military strikes against the Assad regime in Syria, after the regime’s alleged use of chemical weapons.

The committee heard from Secretary of State John Kerry, who used to chair the committee, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, who used to be a member, and the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Martin Dempsey.

We listen to some of the back-and-forth from the hearing.

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