The top House Republican in charge of foreign policy is lining up allies in his bid to directly arm the Iraqi Kurds in their fight against the Islamic State (IS).
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., is circulating a Dear Colleague letter asking colleagues of both parties to sign on to legislation that would allow the Obama administration to bypass Baghdad, Al-Monitor has learned. The pending legislation will largely mirror a bill that Royce filed late last year with ranking member Eliot Engel, D-N.Y.