On the eve of September 11th, President Barak Obama announced that he would expand air strikes in Iraq, as well as move into Syria to combat the Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria, better known as ISIS. His response to the terrorist group was one of continued US aggression.
Thirteen years after the War on Terror was started and the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) was enacted to give President George W. Bush wide-sweeping authority to attack Al-Qaeda in any state he suspected of housing Al-Qaeda, President Obama is now using the same authority to go after ISIS. He is continuing a long legacy of US military force in Iraq and the Middle East, keeping us on course for endless war.
The problems with this approach are many. To start, ISIS formed in response to the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. Destabilization of the country by US forces was a prime catalyst for helping this new group grow and thrive. Approaching the problem with more military force seems likely to only exacerbate the problem, not make it better. In addition, the justification to take action using the AUMF incorrectly assumes that ISIS has grown from Al-Qaeda.
The Peace Economy Project calls on Congress to check the President and his drive to continue war in the Middle East. Just last year, President Obama was promising to revise the AUMF, narrowing its scope, and eventually repealing the law. Now he is using it as justification to continue the US war on terror. It is time for Congress to step in and repeal the AUMF once and for all. It is also time for the decision of war to come back to Congress to vote on, a body more accountable the war-wary citizens of the United States.
We hold deep concerns of the brutality caused by ISIS. But we are also concerned with the devastation that years of occupation and aggression by the US has caused on the region. Now is not a time for more war, but for working with the international community to allow the people of Iraq and Syria to decide how best to handle terrorist aggression within their own borders.
Take Action: Tell Congress to Repeal the AUMF and Take a Vote on ISIS Action
Call Congressman Lacy Clay: 314-367-1970
Call Congresswoman Ann Wagner: 636-779-5449
Call Senator Claire McCaskill: 314-367-1364
Call Senator Roy Blunt: 314-725-4484
Sign on to Code Pink’s appeal to President Obama: Don’t Bomb Syria or Iraq
