Search Results: year anniversaries

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/iraq-war-anniversary-authorization_n_64148a95e4b0bc5cb6501748#
20 Years After Iraq War, Some Senators Still Think It Was Worth It

The Senate will mark the 20th anniversary of the U. S. invasion of Iraq this week by voting to repeal the outdated authorization of military force that greenlighted the war, a bipartisan effort to formally conclude a badly misguided conflict America is still paying for today.
Nineteen Senate Republicans voted with Democrats to advance its repeal on Thursday, a largely symbolic move that advocates say is designed to reassert Congress’s authority to declare war. Yet it leaves untouched the broad 2001 authorization for use of military force (AUMF) that every presidential administration since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks has used to wage war across the globe.

But there are still some Republican senators who argue that good things came out of the war and that the whole enterprise was ultimately worth it. That view is not shared by more recent GOP arrivals in Congress, however, reflecting a changed party under former President Donald Trump that is increasingly questioning U. S. involvement abroad, including in Ukraine.

https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna7634313#:~:text=CIA%E2%80%99s%20final%20report%3A%20No%20WMD%20found%20in%20Iraq,%E2%80%9Cas%20far%20as%20feasible%E2%80%9D%20and%20has%20found%20nothing.
CIA’s final report: No WMD found in Iraq

In his final word, the CIA’s top weapons inspector in Iraq said Monday that the hunt for weapons of mass destruction has “gone as far as feasible” and has found nothing, closing an investigation into the purported programs of Saddam Hussein that were used to justify the 2003 invasion.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3886527-texas-lawmaker-files-texit-bill-to-spur-vote-on-exploring-secession-from-us/
Texas lawmaker files ‘TEXIT’ bill to spur vote on exploring secession from US

A Texas state lawmaker filed a bill on Monday that would set a referendum for voters to decide whether the state should explore the possibility of seceding from the United States.

If the measure — known as the TEXIT Referendum Act — passes, a referendum on whether Texas “should reassert its status as an independent nation” would be scheduled for the next general election on Nov. 7, 2023. The bill would also require potential plans to be presented to the state legislature.

“The Texas Constitution is clear that all political power resides in the people,” Rep. Bryan Slaton (R) wrote in a statement. “After decades of continuous abuse of our rights and liberties by the federal government, it is time to let the people of Texas make their voices heard.”

A coalition of Texas lawmakers — including Slaton — filed the same bill in March 2021, which was referred to the State Affairs committee. It did not, however, receive a hearing or a vote.

Slaton said this time around, he was filing the bill 187 years after the fall of the Alamo.

“On this 187th anniversary of the fall of the Alamo I’m proud to file this bill to let the people of Texas vote on the future of our State,” Slaton wrote in his statement. “Texas was born out of a desire for liberty and self-governance, and that desire continues to burn in the hearts of all Texans.”

The Texas Nationalist Movement (TNM) — whose mission is to secure and protect the political, cultural and economic independence of Texas — called the filing of the bill “great news.”

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-biden-ukraine-visit_n_63f3412de4b0e2590d3e6d30
President Joe Biden Makes Surprise Trip To Ukraine

President Joe Biden on Monday made an unannounced visit to Kyiv and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s war against Ukraine this week.

Biden was previously scheduled to depart the U. S. for Warsaw, Poland, later Monday.
This marks Biden’s first visit to the country since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24, 2022.
“When [Russian President Vladimir] Putin launched his invasion nearly one year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West was divided,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House. “He thought he could outlast us. But he was dead wrong.”

Biden added he would announce new sanctions “against elites and companies that are trying to evade or backfill Russia’s war machine.”

Biden spoke alongside Zelenskyy at Mariinsky Palace, pledging half a billion dollars of additional assistance to Ukraine, including more military equipment.
The president added that while the international community feared Kyiv would not withstand Russia’s attack, Ukrainians have managed to fight on