Veterans group supports effort to repeal outdated AUMFs, reclaim congressional war powers
ARLINGTON, Va.—Concerned Veterans for America’s Senior Adviser Dan Caldwell issued the following statement regarding the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s pending markup of S.J. Res 10 – a bill sponsored by Senator Kaine (VA) and Senator Young (IN) which would repeal the 1991 and 2002 Authorizations for Use of Military Force (AUMF):
“The 1991 and 2002 AUMFs have long-outlived their intended purpose and should have been repealed long ago. Leaving the 1991 and 2002 AUMFs on the books only creates more opportunities and justifications for the Executive Branch to conduct military action abroad without consent from the people’s representatives in Congress. We applaud Senator Kaine and Senator Young for introducing this legislation and their leading role in working to ensure Congress reclaims its war powers. We hope that both the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and full Senate swiftly pass this commonsense and bipartisan legislation.”
BACKGROUND
CVA recently led a coalition in sending a letter to members of Congress urging support of a bipartisan resolution introduced by Sens. Kaine and Young to repeal a pair of obsolete AUMFs. The group was joined on the letter by Defense Priorities Initiative, FreedomWorks, and the R Street institute.
CVA has been working to repeal the outdated 2001 and 2002 AUMFs for years, making it a priority for its grassroots and advocacy efforts in its annual policy agendas (2019, 2020, 2021). Notably, though less than a fifth of current members of Congress voted on the 2001 AUMF, it has been invoked to justify 41 operations in 19 countries since passage.
In 2019, the group partnered with VoteVets, a traditional rival, to urge lawmakers to reclaim their constitutional war powers duties. The New York Times wrote about the unlikely partnership. Setting the example for lawmakers and the administration, the groups found common ground on this issue and flew activists and volunteers into DC to meet with their members of Congress to bring some real, lasting policy change in Washington.
CVA has been staunch in its support of lawmakers who have taken a principled stand and worked to repeal these measures in the past. In 2019, CVA welcomed the addition of the bipartisan War Powers Caucus to Congress, applauding lawmakers for prioritizing the issue. CVA also launched a digital ad campaign thanking lawmakers for standing against endless war, praising lawmakers for voting to ensure proper Congressional input before any offensive military force against Iran.
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