When President Bush decided to confront Iraq, he presented a resolution to Congress that would give him almost unlimited authority to pursue that end. It was an unusual request, because Congress is given authority under the Constitution to declare war. Bush was asking Congress to give that authority before he had publicly declared that a war was necessary, and without an imminent threat from Iraq. Progressives felt this was an unprecedented abandonment of power for the sake of a war they did not feel was needed in the first place. Byrd (D-WV) joined them in this complaint by attempting to block the resolution on force at every turn. This amendment would have placed a one-year limit on the authorization: at that point, the president could extend the authorization if he certified it was necessary and Congress had not passed a joint resolution disapproving of the extension. The amendment, supported by Progressives, was soundly defeated, 31-66.