Congressman Mike Rogers, R-Alabama, spoke on the House floor against the repeal of the 2002 authorization for use of military force — known as the AUMF — in Iraq.
“This bill is a bad deal for our national security and the safety of American service members overseas,” Rogers said. “Since the liberation of Iraq, the murderous Iranian regime has armed proxy organizations to kill Americans and innocent Iraqis.”
“Iran has armed proxy militias with small arms, mortars, rockets, and now sophisticated UAVs that can avoid base defenses,” Rogers said. “The Obama and Trump administrations both used the 2002 AUMF to target terrorist threats originating from Iraq. Threats like ISIS and militias backed by Iran have killed and injured American servicemembers and contractors. This bill would repeal the 2002 AUMF and offer nothing in its place. No authorization to mop up ISIS forces or whatever movement comes next. No authorization to target Iranian proxies whose sole goal is to destabilize Iraq and kill Americans. This bill only offers the illusion of withdrawal.”
“Like President Biden’s failing Afghanistan strategy, it does nothing to change the reality on the ground in Iraq,” Rogers said. “The threats we face today will remain. And American commanders will be forced to face those threats with one fewer tool than they had the day before. Repealing the 2002 AUMF without a replacement only undermines our national security. It offers no real solution to the issues in the Middle East. I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill.”
Rogers, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, spoke on the House floor against the repeal of the 2002 AUMF. The House on Thursday approved a bill to repeal the 2002 AUMF in Iraq, a measure that has the backing of the White House.
The bill was sponsored by Congresswoman Barbara Lee, D-California.
The White House’s Office of Management and Budget on Monday released a statement endorsing the bill to repeal the 2002 AUMF on Monday, saying that the U.S. “has no ongoing military activities that rely solely on the 2002 AUMF as a domestic legal basis, and repeal of the 2002 AUMF would likely have minimal impact on current military operations.”
The bill passed by a vote of 268 to 161, with 49 Republicans voting for the repeal, while only one Democrat voted against it. The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate.
Rogers is serving in his 10th term representing Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District.
