House Democrats vote to repeal 9/11-era law used to authorize perpetual war

[babylonsister]

House Democrats vote to repeal 9/11-era law used to authorize perpetual war
Democrats want Trump to know: Any military action against Iran needs congressional authorization.
By Tara Golshan Jun 19, 2019, 6:30pm EDT


As the United States escalates tensions with Iran, House Democrats are sending President Donald Trump a message: If he wants to take any military action, he has to get permission from Congress first.

The House voted Wednesday to repeal the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), which was passed in the days after 9/11, and gave President George W. Bush the authority to go to war with al-Qaeda and any related organization. For the past 18 years, presidents of both parties have used this same 2001 congressional war authorization as justification for wars all over the Middle East.

The vote is particularly significant now, as Trump administration officials briefed Congress Wednesday on what they said are connections between Iran and al-Qaeda. Trump’s administration has been escalating tensions with Iran, leading to mounting concern on Capitol Hill that the administration is itching for war.

This week, the United States announced plans to send an additional 1,000 troops to the Middle East to counter Iran, after blaming the country for attacking oil tankers that belonged to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, and Norway. Iran denies any involvement in the attacks. The Trump administration has called an Iranian strike on Americans in the Middle East “imminent,” and Iran has indicated that it may stop abiding by the 2015 nuclear arms deal (which Trump removed the United States from in 2018).

This is the first time the House has successfully passed a repeal of the 2001 AUMF since it was enacted. The provision was attached to a government funding bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. It was an amendment brought forward by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), who notably was the only House lawmaker to vote against the war authorization in 2001 — a decision some have hailed as prescient.

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https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/6/19/18691936/house-democrats-vote-repeal-9-11-aumf-war-iran

[BigmanPigman]

1. Lee tried to get this bill passed for a zillion years and most recently

last year. I seem to recall that it was never brought up for a vote when the GOP had the House. Fuck Ryan! What evil doings is that bastard up to these days?

Thank you Rep Lee!