The U.S. House has voted to terminate the 2002 Authorization For Use Of Military Force (AUMF), a piece of legislation that gave then-President George W. Bush the authority to invade Iraq.
The main purpose of the invasion was to pursue and unseat Saddam Hussain as the dictator of Iraq.
The 2002 AUMF has served as a means for many military operations in Iraq since 9/11. Now, Sen. Todd Young of Indiana is one of 11 GOP senators on Capitol Hill who support ending the 2002 AUMF.
“We let our warfighters in the future know that the American people are with them every time there is a military engagement,” Young told MSNBC. “As opposed to leaving, as one of my colleagues characterized as, a zombie authorization on the book that may be used to engage in a war that was never authorized or intended by Congress.”
Young is working with his fellow Republicans and Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine on a similar piece of legislation to the one passed in the House that would repeal the 2002 AUMF, which was partially used as justification when former President Trump ordered attacks on Iranian targets in Iraq during his presidency.
Another AUMF was passed in 2001, which gave President Bush authority to order the invasion of Afghanistan. Young also supports repealing this AUMF as well, but also revising and replacing it.
“It’s essential that we have some sort of construct out their to fight non-state actors,” Young said. “That’s what the 2001 AUMF allows us to do. Congress needs to, once again, speak on this issue. It needs to assure that there is continuity on legal authorities as we repeal and replace the 2001 AUMF.”
Young said there also needs to be some sort of authorization that gives the U.S. authority to act in the event a new terrorist threat pops up in a “new geography.”
Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell is among the group of Republicans that is against repealing the 2002 AUMF, calling the push “reckless.”