Sanders says he has enough support to pass Yemen War Powers Resolution

Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday signaled that he has the votes needed to pass a War Powers Resolution that would block U.S. support for the Saudi-led war on Yemen, where more than 23 million people are suffering from one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises even amid a cease-fire.

The Vermont Independent senator told The Intercept that he plans to bring the resolution to the Senate floor for a vote “hopefully next week,” and when asked whether he has enough support for the measure he said, “I think we do, yes.”

A cease-fire between the Saudi-led alliance and the Houthis expired in early October, but both sides have maintained peace. However, a blockade by the Saudis has persisted, leaving tens of millions without sufficient access to food, healthcare, and clean water.

“We must put an end to the unauthorized and unconstitutional involvement of U.S. armed forces in the catastrophic Saudi-led war in Yemen and Congress must take back its authority over war,” Sanders said in July when he introduced the resolution. “More than 85,000 children in Yemen have already starved and millions more are facing imminent famine and death… This war has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis today and it is past time to end U.S. complicity in those horrors.”

The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) said Sanders’ revelation Tuesday was “massive news” for the fight to end U.S. involvement in the war.

Sanders was the lead sponsor of a War Powers Resolution to end U.S. support for the Saudi-led war which passed in the Senate in March 2019, but former President Donald Trump vetoed the resolution.

“Whether there is a re-negotiation of the truce or not, Congress needs to assert its constitutional authority over war-making under the Biden administration just as they did when Trump was assisting the Saudi-led coalition,” Yemeni-American academic Shireen Al-Adeimi told The Intercept.

The resolution would put pressure on the Saudi-led coalition to negotiate a long-term peace agreement, said Cavan Kharrazian, foreign policy adviser for Demand Progress.

“Without a clear path towards a long-term truce, Saudi Arabia could restart its deadly bombing campaign. If passed, the resolution would ensure that the U.S. is no longer a party to the Saudi-UAE-led coalition’s offensive campaign,” said Kharrazian.

Last month, President Joe Biden drew condemnation from progressives when his administration said in court filings that Saudi Prime Minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman should be granted sovereign immunity in a civil case regarding the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Originally published at Commondreams.org.