September 6, 2024 - AUMFs Against Iran’s Terror Proxies and Against its Nuclear Program Would Bolster Deterrence

Contrary to arguments that the only alternative to diplomacy is war, the threat of force against Iran is the best means for avoiding the use of force—both by the United States and Iran. [...] Policymakers should ask: why is there a different standard in law and practice for groups like Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis? With the exception of the October 7 attacks and the Beirut Barracks Bombing, most terror attacks by Iranian proxies have been fairly low-profile, designed to obfuscate responsibility, and have not been covered by the media in a manner to pressure Congress into acting. [...] As Congress continues to debate the 2001 and 2002 AUMFs, they should be sure to expand, not reduce, the scope of these authorizations against terrorist groups that target Americans to include authorizations of force against Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, and should consider the inclusion of Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). [...] AUMFs Would Bolster Deterrence and the Legislative Branch The longer Congress remains silent on the president’s ability to use force against Iranian threats, the more irrelevant the body will become. [...] And it would reflect the will of the founders: that the powers to engage in military hostilities are of such JINSA AUMFs Against Iran’s Terror Proxies and Against Its Nuclear Program Would Bolster Deterrence 11 consequence that they should lie—not with the president—but with the people and their elected representatives in Congress.