During consideration of the bill (S. 316) to repeal the 1991 and 2002 authorizations for the use of military force against Iraq, Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) offered an amendment to repeal the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force. Enacted in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the 2001 AUMF authorized the president to use military force against the terrorists involved, including those who aided and harbored them, and was used as the legal authority for U.S. military entry into Afghanistan. But that was more than 20 years ago. Since that time, the 2001 AUMF has been used by presidents as a blank check for military interventions in more than 20 countries, from Afghanistan to Libya, Somalia, and Yemen.
The Senate rejected Paul’s amendment on March 22, 2023 by a vote of 9 to 86 (Roll Call 65). We have assigned pluses to the yeas because the Constitution does not give the president a blank check to go to war without congressional approval.
