Happy Friday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I'm Rebecca Kheel, and here's your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond.
Overnight Defense: Troops head back to Afghanistan to aid diplomatic evacuation thehill.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thehill.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
“Congresses of both parties have abdicated our responsibility regarding the power to declare war and allowed presidents of both parties to act unilaterally,” Kaine said. “Congressional action to repeal these authorizations will represent a step toward Congress taking its most solemn responsibility seriously.”
The breakdown: The panel voted 14-8 to approve the bill.
In addition to Young, GOP Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Rob Portman (Ohio) voted with Democrats to support the bill.
GOP tries to bring in Iran: Most Republicans have been arguing repealing the 2002 AUMF could hamstring U.S. counterterrorism missions which fall under the 2001 AUMF and embolden the Iran-backed militias that have been targeting U.S. forces in Iraq which the administration holds it has the authority to respond to under Article II of the Constitution.
In a statement after the visit, Crow said he was “honored” to join the congressional delegation to “help welcome the first group of evacuated Afghan interpreters and their families to their new home in the United States.”
“There are still thousands of Afghan partners and their families waiting for evacuation and in grave danger,” he added. “I look forward to working with the Biden administration and my colleagues in Congress to finish the job and honor our promises.”
In her own statement, Duckworth said she wanted to “thank them from the bottom of my heart, in person, for their service to the United States.”
SecDef’s welcome: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin
He also said about 300 U.S. troops from several installations are prepared to “provide logistics, temporary lodging and medical support at Fort Lee.”
“We have spoken many times about the moral obligation we have to help those who have helped us, and we are fully committed to working closely with our interagency partners to meet that obligation,” Austin added.
What now: The Afghans are expected to stay at Fort Lee for about a week as they complete a final medical check as required by law, as well as some final Department of Homeland Security processing, said Tracey Jacobson, who is overseeing the evacuation operation for the State Department.