WASHINGTON — Democratic senators unveiled legislation Friday night to repeal the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force, a sweeping 9/11-era war authorization that never expired and that President Barack Obama is now using to justify the U.S. military campaign against the Islamic State.
Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced the bill. It would terminate the 2001 AUMF in three years and clarify that Congress “never intended and did not authorize a perpetual war” by passing that authorization.
Their legislation comes days after Obama sent Congress a new AUMF tailored to the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIL or ISIS. While his proposal calls for limits on duration and ground troops, it does nothing to rein in the 2001 AUMF — the same authority Obama has been using for the past six months to fight ISIS. That means, regardless of whether Congress passes his new AUMF, the old authorization’s broad war authority remains available to Obama and future presidents.
“By leaving in place the 2001 AUMF, Congress could be authorizing a state of perpetual war and giving this President and future presidents a blank check to keep America at war,” said Cardin.
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(9) Even after the expiration of the Authorization for Use of Military Force, there is likely to remain the need to defend against specific networks of violent extremists, including al Qaeda and its affiliates, that threaten the United States, and the President must work with the legislative branch to secure whatever new authorities may be required to meet the threat and comply with the Constitution and the War Powers Resolution (50 U.S.C. 1541 et seq.).
SEC. 3. SUNSET OF 2001 AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILITARY FORCE.
The Authorization for Use of Military Force (Public Law 107–40; 50 U.S.C. 1541 note) shall terminate on the date that is three years after the date of the enactment of this Act, unless reauthorized.
