The White House said Thursday it supports repealing two Iraq war power acts if Congress passes the repeal effort, as lawmakers work to reassert their authority in military intervention abroad.
The Senate is expected to vote Thursday to advance the measures, which would repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for use of force in Iraq. The move would mark a formal conclusion to the conflicts, and a symbolic reassertion of Congress’s ability to declare war.
If 60 senators support the procedural vote Thursday, the resolution would likely get a final vote next week. The measures ending the Gulf and Iraq Wars were advanced last week by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Lawmakers have worked without success in recent years to repeal the AUMFs – authorization for use of military force – that gave the US president broad powers to conduct military operations without approval from Congress.
The 2002 AUMF has been used by successive presidents for military operations beyond its original scope.
Former President Barack Obama used the 2002 measure to justify airstrikes against Islamic State terrorists in Iraq and Syria. Former President Donald Trump cited that AUMF when authorizing the strike that took out Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad.
In its statement, the White House said repealing the measure would “have no impact on current US military operations and would support this Administration’s commitment to a strong and comprehensive relationship with our Iraqi partners.”
“President Biden remains committed to working with the Congress to ensure that outdated authorizations for the use of military force are replaced with a narrow and specific framework more appropriate to protecting Americans from modern terrorist threats,” the White House statement said. “Toward that end, the Administration will ensure that Congress…
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