WASHINGTON – In advance of his speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released the following statement on his view of the United States’ strategy to confront ISIS:

Last night, the president of the United States laid out a strong, compelling case for taking the fight to ISIS. I wholeheartedly agree with the imperative for action he outlined. ISIS represents true evil, and we would betray our core principles and responsibilities if we ignored it, simply because of weariness here at home with military engagement overseas.

The president was right to lead with a recognition that it is political, rather than military, progress in Iraq that will truly make the difference in eliminating ISIS as a threat. I believe Congress should back this up with action - if we are going to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on military action inside Iraq, we and our allies should commit double that amount to support political efforts to empower moderate Sunni leaders in the region so that they see a benefit to turning their backs on ISIS.

President Obama also committed to establishing and leading a broad international coalition to defeat ISIS. Clearly, in the short run, the United States needs to confront ISIS with military power. But this should only be done as part of a true coalition bringing together Sunni and Shiite Middle East nations, as the president outlined.

However, I do not believe that a comprehensive attack on ISIS must include a commitment to arm and train the Syrian rebels. Indeed, this tactic could backfire and be counterproductive to our goal of eliminating ISIS. It will be very difficult to thread the needle of supporting a Shiite regime against a Sunni insurgency in Iraq while, at the same time, supporting a Sunni insurgency against a Shiite leader in Syria. This will make it hard to put together lasting regional coalitions. Further, it is increasingly impossible to sort out rebels who are friendly to the United States and those who are not. I want ISIS defeated in Syria and I want Bashar al-Assad to pay for his crimes. But too much can go wrong, for not enough possible gain, if the United States increases its involvement in the Syrian civil war.

But most importantly, Congress needs to authorize this war. I do not believe that the Authorization for Military Force passed in the days following September 11th grants the president the power to conduct an open ended, long term war against ISIS. Congress needs to fulfill its Constitutional duty and debate the president’s proposal for military action. This is too important to not have all voices at the table before moving forward.