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No Blank Checks for Endless War

The U.S. has been at war for 17 years, leading to widespread human rights violations. Since 2001, the U.S. has expanded its armed conflict from Afghanistan, and then Iraq, to other countries, including Syria, where thousands have been killed.

Right now, we have very little information about civilian casualties and war crimes committed by the US. The US has had military operations in at least eight different countries, and Congress needs to oversee what the Trump administration is doing.

Instead of creating accountability for who the US is killing, Congress is now trying to pass a new law authorizing President Trump to wage war all around the world against any armed groups he deems “terrorists” without having to publicly name those groups or even to demonstrate that they are in fact organized armed groups.

Act now: Stop Congress from authorizing a blank check to the Trump administration for endless war.

⬇ Make Your Voice Heard ⬇

Dear Senator,

I write to express my concern about the new Authorization for the Use of Military Force that Senators Bob Corker and Tim Kaine have co-sponsored.  By authorizing all current U.S. military action and allowing the Trump administration to continue and expand that to include fighting new, unnamed “associated forces” anywhere in the world, the bill essentially hands a blank check to the Trump administration to wage a global war against “terrorism” indefinitely, and to undermine basic human rights in the process.

Already, the U.S. has  been at war for 17 years, using military force in at least eight different countries against eight different non-state armed groups.  The United States has expanded the wars authorized in 2001 and 2002 exponentially; this proposed new law would rubber-stamp that indefinite and limitless expansion, and encourage it to continue.
 
The law also prevents Congress from exercising important oversight over this administration’s use of military force.  President Trump has expressed a dangerous disregard for children and families trapped in war zones. He has also expressed support for unlawful targeting of civilians, saying: "When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families. They care about their lives, don't kid yourself."
 
Since he took office, thousands of civilians have been killed in Syria, including many by U.S.-led Coalition forces that at times failed to take necessary precautions to protect them.  Meanwhile, the U.S. has stepped up air strikes in Yemen and Somalia, yet provided almost no information about who has been killed.  Strong Congressional oversight is critical to preventing further human rights abuses by the U.S. government.
 
The new law would put large numbers of civilians at grave risk and codify the United States’ global “war on terror,” undermining the international laws of war and human rights law that are designed to protect civilians and minimize the devastating impacts of war.

We urge you not to support any legislative proposal that codifies the administration’s power to wage a global endless war.
 
Sincerely,

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