Ending the Iraq War(s)
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Thursday, Congress introduced a bill to repeal two war authorizations, passing in the House, 268-161. Forty-nine Republicans and one Democrat voted against it.
One of the war authorizations, passed in 2002, enabled the President of the United States to act preemptively, with military force, to “defend U.S. national security against the continuing threat posed by Iraq.”
That measure was cited in 2020, when President Trump, years after hostilities ended, authorized a drone strike on Iranian General Qassim Solemani, as he visited Iraq. The administration said that Solemani was plotting attacks against US troops in the region.
That measure and one that authorized use of force in Iraq during Desert Storm in 1991, are still active and on the books decades later.
The newly passed bill is expected to be brought to the Senate for a vote later this year.
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