The Archive

WAR POWERS

Lawmakers reintroduce Iraq AUMF repeal

News: Repealing the authorizations for using military force has been one of the most elusive yet overwhelmingly bipartisan goals on the Hill in recent years.

Legislation rescinding the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for the use of military force (AUMF) in Iraq has cleared House and Senate committees already. And the full House passed a repeal of the 2002 AUMF two years ago.

But it’s been a different story in the Senate, where Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) has secured promises from Majority Leader Chuck Schumer for a vote on the measure but hasn’t seen it get to the floor yet. What’s more, House and Senate negotiators left the AUMF repeal out of the annual defense authorization bill in December.

Kaine and his counterpart, Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), are hoping to supercharge the effort today with the reintroduction of their legislation to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations. The pair have an interesting list of new co-sponsors spanning the ideological spectrum as well.

Here’s Kaine on the reintroduction of the measure:

Congress passed the 1991 AUMF ahead of the first Gulf War, and the 2002 AUMF was adopted to topple Saddam Hussein’s government in Baghdad. Proponents of repealing the measures say they’ve been misused by presidents from both parties to legally justify military action that Congress hasn’t explicitly authorized.

Democrats have generally backed the repeal efforts, but the challenge has been getting enough Republicans on board in the Senate to clear a filibuster. Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) have long backed repealing these AUMFs, often standing alone.

But other conservatives are now signing on, such as Sens. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.). And that’s on top of those GOP senators who already endorsed the effort last time around and signed on as co-sponsors once more: Chuck Grassley (Iowa), Steve Daines (Mont.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine).

Support for the bill in the House is growing as well. It’s led by Reps. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), Chip Roy (R-Texas), Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) and Tom Cole (R-Okla.), the Rules Committee chair and a top appropriator. The list also includes two freshman GOP members, Reps. Harriet Hageman of Wyoming and Andy Ogles of Tennessee.

Most GOP leaders oppose doing away with these AUMFs. They say doing so would be reckless because the AUMFs can serve as a legal basis for a president to target Iranian proxies in Iraq. Some of those proxy groups have attacked U.S. forces in the region.

But repeal supporters say that the AUMFs were adopted to target the Iraqi government — now a staunch U.S. ally and security partner in the region — and are therefore no longer valid.

“Congress must do its job and take seriously the decision to not just commit America to war, but to affirmatively say that we are no longer at war,” Young said.

Kaine and Young believe their bill can clear the 60-vote threshold in the Senate, which would require support from all 51 Democrats and at least nine Republicans. The bill would likely pass the GOP-controlled House, too, but only if Speaker Kevin McCarthy puts it on the floor for a vote.

In recent years there’s also been a side-by-side effort to repeal and replace the 2001 AUMF, which was passed in the days following 9/11 as an open-ended authorization for the president to target terrorist groups linked to the attacks. The White House has endorsed a modernization effort for the 2001 AUMF, although those talks haven’t gained much traction.

— Andrew Desiderio

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

D.C.’s attorney general: Back off, Congress

D.C.’s attorney general has a message for Congress as the GOP-controlled House prepares to vote on two resolutions about the District today: Stay out of our business.

“It’s an exercise in political theater from some of the folks on the Hill to engage in these disapproval resolutions, as opposed to really trying to engage and pass laws that are going to make people safer,” Attorney General Brian Schwalb told us Wednesday. “They really shouldn’t be meddling in D.C. affairs.”

The House will vote on the GOP resolutions today with the aim of overturning two bills passed by the D.C. Council. A resolution from House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) would overturn a bill allowing non-citizens to vote in local elections. Rep. Andrew Clyde’s (R-Ga.) measure is focused on reversing changes to the D.C. criminal code that Republicans have slammed as “soft on crime.”

When we sat down with Schwalb, the attorney general told us he hadn’t heard from anyone in the House about the measures.

Schwalb, who was elected in November 2022, fiercely defended the new D.C. criminal code as a necessary update to the city statutes. Schwalb said the code’s controversial ending of mandatory minimum sentencing is vital to reduce mass incarceration. Schwalb – a former trial attorney in the Justice Department’s Tax Division – added that the changes increase potential prison time in cases of armed robbery and attempted murder.

However, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has also opposed the revised criminal code, including reducing maximum penalties for some charges. But like Schwalb, Bowser wants Congress to stay out of this debate.

With the GOP resolutions likely to clear the House, Schwalb says he currently has no plans to lobby any senators against the measures. The resolutions are unlikely to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate.

“Once again, the District of Columbia is being used as a prop as part of a much larger national debate. My view is that they ought to leave us out of that,” Schwalb added.

Schwalb also argued that the resolutions are “totally inconsistent with the language in the spirit of the Home Rule Act,” which allows D.C.’s city council “to legislate and manage the city’s affairs.”

Republicans don’t see it this way. “Congress has a constitutional duty to protect our nation’s capital from left-wing policies that will allow crime to run rampant and permit non-citizens to vote in local elections,” Comer said.

“I strongly recommend the D.C. Attorney General go back to law school for a refresher on Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17 of the Constitution, which grants Congress exclusive legislative jurisdiction over Washington’s affairs,” Clyde added.

— Max Cohen

WASHINGTON PRESS CLUB FOUNDATION CONGRESSIONAL DINNER & VIP RECEPTION

Last night, Punchbowl News was proud to host the VIP reception before the Washington Press Club Foundation’s 77th Annual Congressional Dinner at the Waldorf Astoria. The event brought together members of Congress, the press, and D.C. insiders to celebrate the Capitol Hill press corps.

Raising a glass: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sens. Todd Young (R-Ind.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Reps. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), Susie Lee (D-Nev.), Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), and Nancy Mace (R-S.C.).

Also joining us were WPCF Board President Seung Min Kim of the Associated Press, WPCF Executive Director Suzanne Pierron, Connie Chung, Susan Page of USA Today, Melanie Zanona and Manu Raju of CNN, Burgess Everett of Politico, Ali Vitali of NBC, Ashley Lerner of GM, Alex Katz of Blackstone, Emily Schillinger of the American Investment Council, Sena Fitzmaurice of Comcast, Amy Garland of Bully Pulpit Interactive, Rodell Mollineau of Rokk Solutions, William Dermody of the American Beverage Association, Amanda Slater of Mastercard, and Erica Arbetter of Google.

Here’s a selection of some of the sharpest jokes:

BIG NEWS

The Bagel Caucus unveils its lineup. Plus, the media is now invited!

One of the most important developments on Capitol Hill in the last several years is the creation of the Bagel Caucus. The name is self explanatory, of course. A group of Democrats – led by Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) – will be sampling bagels. These bagels will come primarily from Goldman’s New York district, which includes a swath of Manhattan and south Brooklyn. We wrote about this caucus a few days ago.

We have pushed for transparency in this effort. And we have very good news for you: Because of our urging, this meeting will be open to the press. We consider this a very big victory. Thanks to all involved.

The bagels will be imported from New York from the following bagelries:

All of these shops offer online ordering.

BUT … We have some news: Punchbowl News will be hosting a bagel event very soon in the Capitol. We will keep everyone posted.

– Jake Sherman

MOMENTS

9 a.m.: President Joe Biden will get the daily briefing.

9:40 a.m.: Biden will leave the White House for Andrews, where he will fly to Tampa, Fla. Karine Jean-Pierre will brief on Air Force One.

10:30 a.m.: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries will hold his weekly news conference.

12:15 p.m.: Biden will arrive in Tampa.

1:30 p.m.: Biden will speak about strengthening Social Security and Medicare and health care.

4:10 p.m.: Biden will leave Tampa for Andrews. He is expected at the White House at 6:30 p.m.

Vice President Kamala Harris will be in St. Cloud, Minn.