She was the only member of Congress to vote against the use of force after 9/11. Now, she’s finding unlikely allies in her campaign against America’s forever war: Republicans.

By AUSTIN WRIGHT July 30, 2017

It’s a recent Wednesday afternoon, and Barbara Lee’s communications director is trying to find her. She’s scheduled to give a speech in nine minutes, and she hasn’t read it yet.

The anti-war congresswoman—from an ultraliberal congressional district that includes Berkeley, California—has somehow managed to spark an uprising, joined by rank-and-file Republicans, against House Speaker Paul Ryan. Their demand: Repeal the 2001 war authorization against Al Qaeda and begin debating a new authorization better suited for the wars of today. This strange alliance is all the more remarkable because Lee, one of the leftmost denizens of Capitol Hill, was famously the only member of Congress to vote against the original authorization of force, a vote held just three days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Explaining her decision at the time, she warned, in language that rankled many as the smoke still curled from the ruins of the World Trade Center, “As we act, let us not become the evil that we deplore.”

For Republicans, who have routinely opposed Lee’s past efforts to repeal the 2001 war authorization, something has changed—but their motivations differ. Some, like Representative Scott Taylor of Virginia, say that after three presidents and 16 years of constant war, they had simply reached a breaking point. “It’s time that the American people, via their representatives, are engaged in this debate,” says Taylor, a former Navy SEAL who was injured while fighting in Iraq. Others, like Utah Representative Chris Stewart, a former Air Force pilot, say that with the election of President Donald Trump, Republicans have a chance to craft a new authorization that will not constrain the U.S. military in its war against the Islamic State. “The reason Republicans didn’t really push this in the Obama administration was because many of us feared that he would have a confined AUMF,” says Stewart, using the acronym for authorization for use of military force. “We think we have a president now who would take a more aggressive stand.”

Taylor, Stewart and other Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee stunned Congress-watchers last month for lining up behind an amendment by Lee to repeal the 2001 AUMF. After all, for the better part of two decades, Republicans had ignored Lee’s frequent efforts to rein in an executive branch that many feel has too much freedom to wage war around the globe. They rolled their eyes at ideas like her proposal to create a “Department of Peacebuilding” or to defund U.S. war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now, they were signing on to an amendment that would, over Ryan’s objections, give Congress an eight-month window to debate and pass a new war resolution against the Islamic State and other terrorist groups. And it had Barbara Lee’s name on it.

More:
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/07/30/how-barbara-lee-became-an-army-of-one-215434

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Barbara Lee is new to a lot of people who are idiot racists. It's time they start to face the real world. They've all been busy hating Maxine Waters, all the dirtiest sociopaths like Trump.

The new generation has to learn and gain experience before they can lead.

Not aware of one, and sounds like Nancy P's not keen on a deal. Turmoil, for sure.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/27/us/politics/democrats-joe-crowley-ocasio-cortez.html?

A fighter.

This is not the time for 'business as usual'

Please don't get me wrong, Congresswoman Pelosi has served long and well, but it may be time for her to step graciously aside. She's done her duty, but as much as I admire here, I have to wonder if she has the fire that Congresswoman Lee has.

Cong Lee was the ONLY member of Congress to vote against the resolution (was it the Iraqi War Resolution?) that gave W permission to invade Iraq...

I Like Cong Pelosi but maybe it IS time to go with someone with a different frame of reference.

Great point! Love this! I could't care less the number of years she has been on this planet as much as I care that every one was used to grow, and to continue her service to others. It's her perspective, and frame of reference. Well established over many years. And if we want people that don't traditionally vote to actually get to the polls we had best stop asking what we can do for them and whether they will vote for us only a few days before the election. How anyone is surprised by that Crowley lost is really quite remarkable. When I read a DKOS piece on the tactics being used by his opponent coupled with a social media/internet savvy I knew she was going to win. He tried to call in his re-election from his house far away from the tens of thousands of his constituents that are barely regarded as important people, let alone having an important perspective. Especially in poorer communities, and communities of color where internet access might not be so prevalent and RWNJ radio and e-mail lists access people pretty efficiently we had better start quickly supporting outreach, listening tours, and accountability to communities that Barbara Lee knows quite well. And how many times do we have to inform Perez about these facts?

Few Reps are as intelligent, savvy, committed or as competent as Barbara Lee. This sounds quite like a classic agist/racist dog whistle. Is she too low energy for the job? Or is it a appearance thing?