Lugar bashes Obama's Libya policy

Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) attacked a Senate bill that would authorize a limited use of force in Libya shortly before the Democratic Senate leadership postponed a vote on it Tuesday, criticizing the bill as “overly broad.”

Lugar, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, painted the issue as one of fiscal austerity and strongly criticized President Obama’s handling of the situation.

“We find ourselves in a situation where Congress is debating vast cuts in domestic programs to make essential progress on the deficit, even as President Obama has initiated an expensive, open-ended military commitment in a country that his Defense secretary said is not a vital interest," he said.

The longtime Indiana senator faces a tough primary challenge from Indiana Treasurer Richard Mourdock, who is running to Lugar’s right and seeking Tea Party support. The conservative grassroots movement has named Lugar one of their top targets for 2012.

Lugar has long fought to protect Congress's power to declare war and regulate military operations, but on this issue he's used stronger rhetoric than in the past. In doing so, he may be looking to win over libertarian-leaning Tea Partiers, who believe that the federal government is spending too much overseas as well as within the United States.

“He’s certainly become a little more aggressive to stating his opposition to some of the president’s policies,” said Ed Feigenbaum, the editor of the nonpartisan Indiana Legislative Insight.

With the economy at the forefront in the Hoosier state, where the manufacturing base has been decimated, it is unlikely Libya will be a major campaign issue. Mourdock has so far all but ignored foreign policy issues on the campaign trail.

Still, much of Lugar’s time in the Senate has been focused on foreign policy issues.

“The only foreign policy connection,” said Feigenbaum, “is whether Senator Lugar has been too involved in foreign policy issues at the expense of domestic policy ... or whether he’s been the statesman in the Republican Party as needed.”