Chairwoman DeLauro Statement in Support of Defense Spending Bill Amendment to Repeal 2001 Authorization of Use of Military Force

Floor Speech

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Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment put forward by my colleague Barbara Lee. As Congresswoman Lee stated, the amendment sunsets the overly-broad 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) 240 days after the enactment of this Act. In doing so, it empowers and encourages the Congress to follow its constitutional duty and debate the use of military force.

President Trump has stretched the AUMF to its limits, and is conducting worldwide war, without coming to Congress. A few years ago, four American soldiers died in Niger. And when news broke, it was the first time many members of Congress or Members of the public realized America was at war in northern Africa. The justification for that deployment? The 2001 AUMF.

According to a 2018 Congressional Research Service report, the 2001 AUMF has become a blank check for war. The United States has deployed troops to Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, Libya, and like I mentioned, Niger. The Executive branch alone should not wage war, and unless we revisit the 2001 AUMF, we allow it to continue to do so.

The Congress cannot stand idly by. Matters of war and peace are some of the most fundamental issues facing our nation, and Congress must make its voice heard. It is our Constitutional responsibility to debate the use of military force.

In closing, I urge my colleagues to support Congresswoman Lee's amendment. We have done so before, repeatedly and in a bipartisan fashion. Let us do so again. Our men and women in uniform protect and preserve our freedom, values and way of life. We owe them so much, and we owe them so much more than silence.

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