In the face of a new push in Congress to revise the Executive Branch’s war powers, the White House is signaling it is willing to cooperate on the issue.
On Friday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki responded to a bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate by Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA). The legislation would repeal two authorizations for the use of military force (AUMF) for Iraq, the 1991 AUMF passed for the Gulf War, and the 2002 AUMF used for the Iraq invasion.
“We are committed to working with Congress to ensure that the authorizations for the use of military force currently on the books are replaced with a narrow and specific framework that will ensure we can protect Americans from terrorist threats while ending the forever wars,” Psaki wrote on Twitter.
One AUMF not addressed in Kaine’s bill is the 2001 AUMF that was passed for the war in Afghanistan and kicked off the War on Terror. The 2001 AUMF is by far the most abused and is still used today to fight ISIS, a group that didn’t exist when it was passed.
Earlier this week, Senator Kaine said Congress should reform the 2001 AUMF instead of repealing it, something the White House agrees with. Psaki told reporters on Friday that President Biden “agrees that the AUMF has been around for 20 years and it’s long overdue for it to be updated.”
The renewed focus on the AUMFs was sparked by Biden’s decision to bomb Syria last week. In a letter to Congress, President Biden did not cite a specific AUMF as the legal justification for the strike. Instead, he somehow claimed “self-defense” and said the action was within his legal authority as Commander in Chief.
The Trump administration had cited the 2002 Iraq AUMF as legal justification for the January 2020 assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by a US drone strike in Baghdad.
“We are committed to working with Congress to ensure that the authorizations for the use of military force currently on the books are replaced with a narrow and specific framework that will ensure we can protect Americans from terrorist threats while ending the forever wars,” Psaki wrote on Twitter.
That’s what we have in place NOW. And it’s being abused constantly. Killing an Iranian general on a diplomatic mission, or Biden’s bombing of Syria, is hardly part of the current AUMF. Get rid of the current AUMF. Period.
the ol’ bait and switch.
You can’t reform evil.
Congress by violating the Constitution and granting these powers to the president caused much destruction, death and displacement. These criminals take an oath to defend the Constitution and then forget the oath. . . But hey, there was a lot of money in it.. .My avatar is Smedley D. Butler: “War is a racket. . .the only one in which the profits are reckoned in dollars and the losses in lives.” — MajGen Smedley D. Butler, USMC, double recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, 1935
Two, Congressional Medals of Honor. Two.
I have his book, War is a Racket. A quick read, it should be a text for students in high school and above to study.
And then Biden orders a B-52 fly over to rattle Iran’s cage. Suppose a Russian, or Chinese bomber were to fly over CA…..
https://www.rt.com/russia/516980-matvienko-moscow-dollar-policy/
One method to starve the beast; however, many of the world’s ills emanate from Israel. Why continue to trade with Israel or transact in shekels?
https://mondoweiss.net/2021/02/10-20-american-mouthpieces-for-israeli-government-had-unrivaled-access-to-obama-white-house-rhodes/