Legislators urged to repeal AUMF

To the editor:

Imagine a war zone in the Middle East. Millions have been killed and billions of dollars have been spent with no end in sight.

This war you are picturing is already an ongoing reality due to the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF). Three days after 9/11, Congress essentially handed the president a blank check for war by passing the 2001 AUMF. President Bush used this bill to declare war on Osama bin Laden, and all who were believed to be affiliated with him. The 2001 AUMF was not, however, a one time deal for President Bush alone; it is a way for any president to declare war with anyone, anywhere without the approval of Congress. Fourteen years later, this bill still is in place. In fact, President Barack Obama is using the 2001 AUMF to declare war on Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and, as he did recently, Afghanistan.

I was born in 2001 and I have never known a world without war. I urge Sen. Chuck Grassley, Sen. Joni Ernst and Rep. Rod Blum to repeal the 2001 AUMF, and take back their Constitutional responsibility to make the United States - and the world - a safer place for everyone.

Sam Bruxvoort Colligan

Strawberry Point