U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) forced a vote March 23 in the Senate on an amendment to repeal the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF), which was the pretext to launch the Oct. 7, 2001 invasion of Afghanistan, and the thin cover for numerous U.S. illegal invasions into other countries during the 21st century.
The AUMF was signed into law by President George W. Bush on Sept. 18, 2001, one week after largely Saudi militants flew hijacked airliners into New York’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The Senate rejected Senator Paul’s amendment March 25 by an 86-9 vote. Paul was joined by three other Republicans, four Democrats, and independent Bernie Sanders. Paul said he would continue to fight for this matter.
In a statement Senator Paul posted on his website, he stressed his intent was to return the constitutional War Powers to the U.S. Congress, saying:
