OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Bridenstine was the only member of Oklahoma's U.S. House delegation to vote against President Barack Obama's request to train and arm rebels fighting Islamic State militants in Syria.
U.S. Reps. Tom Cole, James Lankford, Frank Lucas and Markwayne Mullin all voted in favor of the plan, which passed the House on a 273-156 vote Wednesday. The U.S. Senate is expected to take up the proposal Thursday.
Bridenstine says that if the Islamic State is deemed a threat, the United States should "eliminate it," not train and arm rebels.
The proposal was added to a must-pass, stopgap spending bill to keep government agencies operating into December. The measure is the last major business on Capitol Hill before lawmakers depart this week.