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WASHINGTON – Win Without War Government Relations Director Eric Eikenberry released the following statement after the Senate passed a repeal of the 1991 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) on a bipartisan 66-30 vote:

“Today, the Senate made the belated but critical decision to repeal the 2002 and 1991 AUMFs. This appropriately comes days after the 20-year anniversary of the Iraq War – the horrific end result of Congress handing then-President Bush a blank check to wage war at the expense of the people of Iraq and the United States. Thankfully, today’s vote begins the process of accountability the war deserved long ago. We welcome this vote, the first of its kind by the Senate since the Vietnam War, and we thank Senators Tim Kaine and Todd Young for so doggedly pushing for this outcome.

“The Trump administration amply demonstrated the risks of leaving outdated military authorization on the books. We cannot gamble again by allowing the next irresponsible and short-sighted president to abuse their executive power to destroy lives around the world.

“We now call on the House of Representatives, which has already passed bipartisan repeals of the 2002 AUMF on multiple occasions in recent years, to immediately take up repeal and send it to the president’s desk. The Iraq War deserves justice and accountability, and the people of the United States deserve elected leaders that will end our endless wars.”

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Win Without War is a diverse network of activists and national organizations working for progressive foreign policy in the United States.