Intel: House to vote to repeal 2002 Iraq war authorization
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) has bipartisan support and a nod of approval from the White House.
The US House of Representatives will vote to repeal a 2002 law authorizing the Bush administration to use force against the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq, a move that a number of Democrats have said is long overdue.
Why it Matters: Previous attempts by Democrats to repeal the 2002 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) — and to revise the 2001 AUMF, which has been interpreted to allow the military to hunt down Islamist terrorists all over the world for two decades — have failed amid opposition from the Pentagon in both the Obama and Trump administrations due to the war against the Islamic State (IS).
Concern that the Trump administration would try to use the expansively interpreted laws to justify conflict with Iran led to renewed scrutiny from Congress. The latest push is again led by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.).
The vote was announced by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, who called the 2002 law,which authorizes force against a bygone Iraqi government, “unnecessary.”
