Once again, Rand Paul (R-KY) of Kentucky stood alone on the Senate floor to argue his case against adding the country of Montenegro to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, citing concerns that Americans would once again have to fit the bill for a country a world away.
The Senate voted on Monday 97-2 to approve admitting the European country into NATO with virtually no debate.
Paul was the only one to voice a contrary opinion, giving a 16-minute monologue on the matter, warning of the dangers of making promises to foreign countries and upholding the controversial Article V section of the NATO agreements.
"Our unrestricted, un-voted upon involvement in war everywhere informs my opposition to expanding NATO," Paul said. "Everyone likes to talk about NATO's Article V obligation -- to come to the defense of any NATO ally that is attacked. That is in the treaty. If Montenegro is attacked, we will have to respond," he warned.
Paul argued that some in Congress believe that Article V of the international order supersedes the Constitution when it comes to declaring war.
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Also, members of NATO very rarely pay their dues. Each member country is expected to contribute 2 percent of their annual GDP. Since the early 2000s, the U.S. has routinely contributed 3 to 5 percent of its GDP to NATO while major countries such as France (1.78 percent), Germany (1.19), Italy (1.11) and Canada (.99) fall well short.
Therefore, will Congress expect Montenegro to pay their fair share?
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