The White House comments were the first clear signal from the Biden administration that it is on board with a bipartisan push to craft new versions of Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) laws. Critics say the authorizations have been stretched past the breaking point and abused by presidents of both parties at the expense of congressional oversight.
The White House announced its intentions a week after Mr. Biden authorized, without congressional approval or notification, U.S. airstrikes in Syria against the Iran-backed militia Kataib Hezbollah, which the Pentagon said had been targeting American forces in neighboring Iraq.
The president did not cite any AUMF in his legal rationale. Lawmakers and analysts said the strikes, along with President Trump’s decision to target and kill Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani last year, offered more proof that the executive branch had amassed near-limitless power to conduct military operations whenever and wherever they please.
Biden open to repealing US laws that enable forever wars middleeasteye.net - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from middleeasteye.net Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
President Biden on Friday committed to working with Congress to replace existing war powers authorities that have been the legal underpinning for U.S. military action in the Middle East for decades.
Congress should repeal the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), writes Andrew Carleen. Let’s discard the absurd pretension that every threat to this country requires that the executive branch be unfettered in its ability to respond.
Prominent Democratic lawmakers seek justification from Biden administration over US air strikes, with some complaining of overreach By Published date: 26 February 2021 22:39 UTC | Last update: 3 weeks 1 day ago
US lawmakers have asked the administration of President Joe Biden to provide legal justification for its decision to launch air strikes on military targets in Syria, amid growing complaints of overreaching presidential war powers enacted after the attacks of September 11, 2001.
The Pentagon on Friday said the US was responding to attacks by Iran-backed militias earlier this month in which one US military contractor was killed and nine other people were wounded.
According to multiple reports, at least one fighter was killed and three others wounded in Thursday s strike - close to the border region with Iraq, where Kataeb Hezbollah and several other Shia armed factions are said to be headquartered.