Biden supports repeal of Iraq, Gulf War authorizations, White House says

The White House on Thursday threw its support behind legislation to repeal the Iraq and Gulf War military force authorizations.

The White House said the bill keeps with Biden’s “longstanding commitment to replacing outdated authorizations for the use of military force” and “would have no impact on current U.S. military operations,” according to a statement of administration policy.

The bill, sponsored by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.), passed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week. The legislation is up for a procedural vote in the full Senate on Thursday. It would still need to pass the GOP-controlled House to make it to Biden’s desk.

Attempts to end the authorizations for the use of military force (AUMF) for the Gulf War and the Iraq War have been introduced several times before in Congress, including an effort last year that became snagged in congressional business.

The White House noted Thursday that the U.S. is not conducting ongoing military activities that are “primarily” reliant on the 2002 AUMF for the Iraq War, and there are no ongoing military activities reliant on the 1991 AUMF.

“President Biden remains committed to working with the Congress to ensure that
outdated authorizations for the use of military force are replaced with a narrow and specific
framework more appropriate to protecting Americans from modern terrorist threats,” the White House said.