By Chuck Pena
Recently, President Joe Biden ordered the Pentagon to conduct a review of the U.S. military footprint around the world, and a May 1st deadline for complete withdrawal from Afghanistan is less than certain.
It is urgent and important for President Biden to fulfill his pledge to “end the forever wars” and – despite the recommendation of the Afghanistan Study Group to extend the May 1st deadline – bring troops home from Afghanistan as scheduled. This would make for a major milestone for the new president’s first 100 days.
To begin, the Authorization for the Use of Military Force approved by Congress on September 14, 2001, was “to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons.” In other words, Osama bin Laden, Al Qaeda, and the then-Taliban-led government in Afghanistan because it gave safe haven to bin Laden and Al Qaeda.
This piece was originally published in The Orange County Register on February 13, 2021. Read more HERE.