“The Senate will vote Wednesday, September the twenty-eighth, to override President Obama. The veto bill is to give victims’ and families of the 9/11 terrorist attacks the legal right to sue Sabuli Arabia for any purposeful role in the attacks.” Majority leader Mitch McConnell said on Monday, September the twenty-sixth. It would be the first time in nearly eight years in office one of President Obama’s vetoes will be overturned.
The President opposes the bill because, he says, “It could open the door to lawsuits against the U.S. for actions taken by Military service Members, diplomats, and others.” Obama did express sympathy for the 9/11 families in his veto message, on Friday, September the twenty-third, but he voted against the bill because the law would hurt the effectiveness of the administration’s action against terrorism by taking questions on foreign states involvement in terrorism.
In the Recent days, several senators who allowed the bill to pass without objection, expressed serious misgivings for their decisions, and said they wanted to find a way to address the white house’s concerns about soviet immunity. Senator Bob Conker, chairman of the Foreign Relations committee, said two weeks ago “I have tremendous empathy for the victims. At the same time, I have concerns about the precedent this bill will set and what it may mean to American service men, women, and others. Let’s face it --- our alleged drone attacks have killed civilians in Pakistan and Afghanistan. And I think once you start opening doors for these types of activities it can be very problematic.” Once both chambers override the veto, the bill becomes law regardless of President Obama's opposition.
