Will U.S. Formally End Iraq War? Bill Must Pass House Next

Topline

The Senate voted to roll back the president’s ability to use military force in Iraq on Wednesday—and while some Republicans oppose the move, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has said he is open to taking up the legislation in the House, indicating the 118th Congress could formally end the war 20 years after it began.

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

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Key Facts

The legislation, sponsored by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.), passed the Senate, 66-30, with 18 GOP members voting alongside Democrats in favor of repealing both the 1991 and 2002 laws that authorize the president to send troops to Iraq without congressional approval.

The 2002 legislation was implemented ahead of the 2003 invasion of Iraq under former President George W. Bush, while the 1991 law was put into place to allow former President George H.W. Bush to deploy troops to Iraq when it invaded Kuwait, marking the start of U.S. involvement in the Gulf War.

McCarthy, who voted against a version of the repeals during the previous session of Congress, has expressed tepid support for the legislation, but said it will need to go through the committee process before coming to the floor for a vote, meaning it could be amended and sent back to the Senate for final approval.

In the House, the repeals have support from moderate Republicanss, including House Rules Chair Tom Cole (Okla.), and right-wing GOP members, including Reps. Chip Roy (Texas) and Matt Gaetz (Fla.), though other members, including Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas), have said they prefer to replace the bill rather than appeal it.

Some Senate Democrats said they supported the repeals to signal to the Iraqi government the U.S.’s commitment to its military partnership there, where approximately 2,500 U.S. troops are still stationed to train and advise Iraqi troops as they battle the Islamic State.

The legislation also represents a reckoning for some lawmakers who have said they regret their 2002 votes to approve the use of military force in Iraq, sparking a long, expensive and widely unpopular war based somewhat on the miscalculation that Iraq was hiding weapons of mass destruction.

Chief Critic

Some Republicans, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), opposed the bill, with McConnell citing the need for the U.S. to maintain a tough stance against terrorism in the Middle East: “Our terrorist enemies aren’t sunsetting their war against us,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.

Crucial Quote

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) warned that keeping the laws in place means future administrations could “abuse them to ensnare us in another conflict in the Middle East . . . The American people don’t want that, they’re tired of endless wars in the Middle East,” he said during a floor debate last week.

What To Watch For

Biden said he will sign the legislation if it gets to his desk. House Democrats could pass the repeals with the support of some Republicans, which hold a narrow 222-218 majority in the House, though the move would defy the precedent that the majority of the party in power typically approves any bill for it to pass, Politico noted.

Key Background

Previous versions of the bill have failed to pass both chambers. After the House approved similar legislation last year with the support of all but one Democrat and 49 Republicans, it died in committee in the Senate. While the 1991 and 2002 bills were aimed to empower the president in two specific military campaigns in Iraq, they have been cited by previous presidents in using military force elsewhere, including by former President Donald Trump when he ordered the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020.

Tangent

The Senate rejected an amendment sponsored by Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) that would have repealed the president’s authority to use military force against any nation, person or group involved in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.