Brian Jones: “I am pleased that the House is debating H. Con. Res. 105. I want to thank the Republican leadership for working with Mr.…”

“I am pleased that the House is debating H. Con. Res. 105. I want to thank the Republican leadership for working with Mr. Jim McGovern, Barbara Lee, and myself and our staffs to get this language so that we could debate it today. As James Madison said: ``The power to declare war, including the power of judging the causes of war, is fully and exclusively vested in the legislature.'' Unfortunately, we in Congress have for too long abdicated our constitutional responsibility to authorize the use of military force. This began, for me personally, with my vote for the 2002 Authorization for the Use of Military Force Against Iraq, which is one of the biggest regrets during my tenure of Congress in voting for that. With that vote, we gave up our constitutional authority on one of the most important decisions a Member of Congress can make: the decision to send American men and women into war to possibly die. {time} 1030 Madam Speaker, it is my hope that one day, we in Congress will repeal the 2001 and the 2002 AUMF. Until that time comes, I believe that today represents a strong step toward reclaiming the constitutional power that we each have and are entrusted with, to make decisions about going to war or declaring war. I cannot emphasize enough that no decision is more important for a Member of Congress than a vote to send young men and women to fight and to die for our country. The main text of this resolution is simple.…”