Washington– WASHINGTON – After more than two decades, Congress is on the verge of writing a final chapter in the war in Iraq.
The Senate voted Thursday to repeal the resolution that passed the U.S. in 2003 invasionafter the House of Representatives voted last month that would reinstate Basic War Power of Congress.
The amendment offered by Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine, of Virginia, and Republican Sen. Todd Young, of Indiana, was approved by voice vote on the annual defense authorization bill that passed the Senate late Thursday — a unanimous endorsement of ending the war that many now view as a mistake.
The number of Iraqi deaths was estimated at hundreds of thousands, and nearly 5,000 American soldiers were killed in the war that followed the administration of President George W. Bush. Falsely claimed That former President Saddam Hussein was stockpiling weapons of mass destruction.
“This is how the war ends, not with a big bang, but with a whimper,” Kane said after the vote, which lasted only a few seconds without any discussion or objection. However, he said, “America was forever changed by those wars, and so was the Middle East.”
Supporters in both the House and Senate say the repeal is critical to preventing future abuses and reinforcing that Iraq is now a strategic partner of the United States. The House added a similar amendment to its version of the defense measure in September, meaning the repeal will likely end up in the final bill once the two chambers reconcile the two pieces of legislation. Both bills also repeal the 1991 authorization that authorized the US-led Gulf War.
While Congress appears poised to pass repeal, it is unclear whether President Donald Trump will support it. During his first term, his administration cited the 2002 Iraq resolution as part of its legal justification for a 2020 U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani. It is rarely used.
Young said after the vote that he believed Trump should “feel very proud” to sign the bill after campaigning on ending so-called “forever wars,” especially since he would be the first president in modern history to legally end a long-term war.
He said the vote sets an important precedent.
“Congress now affirms very clearly that it is our right and our responsibility not only to authorize military conflicts, but to end military conflicts,” Young said.
The bipartisan vote, which added to the larger bipartisan defense measure, came amid a bitter partisan standoff over a week-long government shutdown. Young said the quick vote was an “extraordinary moment” that he hopes will “help some people see that we can still do things that matter in the United States Congress.”
The Senate also voted to repeal the 2002 resolution two years ago by a vote of 66 to 30. While some Republicans told Kaine privately they still opposed the measure, no one objected to the unanimous vote Thursday evening.
A separate 2001 authorization for the global war on terrorism would do just that It stays in place Under the invoice. Although the 2002 and 1991 resolutions are rarely used and focus on only one country, Iraq, the 2001 resolution gave President George W. Bush broad authority to invade Afghanistan, and approved the use of force “against those nations, organizations, or persons” who planned or assisted in the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
Passed in September 2001, it has been used in recent years to justify U.S. military action against groups — including Al Qaeda and its affiliates, such as the Islamic State and Al-Shabaab — considered a threat to America.