The Wars In Iraq And Afghanistan Are Over. There's Still A Lot More Work To Do To Undo 9/11-Era Atrocities.

     In spite of all the setbacks, President Biden is on track to have one of the most successful first years of any president in U.S. history. Nearly 7 million jobs created, unemployment cut in half, unemployment rates reaching record lows in some states, and what is on track to be the best two-year economic growth in U.S. history, all thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act, as wages go up by historic amounts. The first major infrastructure legislation in 50 years. A record number of federal judiciary confirmations with record professional, racial, gender, and religious diversity. Nearly 80 percent of the nation vaccinated against COVID-19. Now, we must pass the Build Back Better Act, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, the Freedom to Vote Act, the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, and the Raise the Wage Act. 

     Another historic victory, in spite of what some might say, is the end of the Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. America went to war for 20 years in Afghanistan, and nothing has been accomplished since the assassination of Osama bin Laden in 2011. While I admire President Obama greatly, he should have ended the U.S. presence in Afghanistan when the original mandate ended on December 31st, 2014, instead of continuing for nearly seven years in a nation-building mission. America first went to Iraq in 2003 and left in 2011 after Saddam Hussein was deposed and a new government installed, only to return in 2014 with the rise of ISIL in Syria and Iraq. ISIL peaked in January 2016 and lost nearly 70 percent of their territory by January 2017, being defeated in Iraq in 2017 and Syria in 2019 before the assassination of al-Baghdadi. ISIL still conducts occasional kidnappings, suicide bombings, and mass shootings, but they no longer control any territory. A military presence in Iraq was no longer justified, and America's combat mission ended in victory on December 9th, 2021.

     However, this is far from the only work to be done to undo the "new era" of the post-9/11 world. The 2001 and 2002 AUMFs, which have served as blank checks for military action in the Middle East, need to be repealed, with the 2002 AUMF Repeal Act having already passed the House. The United States is still at war in Syria, Yemen, and Somalia, and I'm formally calling on the Biden administration to end at least those first two wars. I'm glad the Biden administration has resumed talks with Iran to restore and build upon the JCPOA negotiated by Obama, which would help end the Persian Gulf Crisis that has been escalating since 2019. The PATRIOT Act, which allows unchecked surveillance on U.S. citizens, needs to be scaled back dramatically. Gitmo, which now holds less than 40 prisoners, needs to be emptied and shut down via executive order. Finally, while the Department of Justice and Joe Biden have taken great steps to combat Islamophobia that has spiked since 9/11 by aggressively prosecuting hate crimes and appointing Muslims to high-level posts, it will take even more aggressive work to end this crisis. 

     So, while great progress has been made this past year, it is only a start. By September 11th, 2026, the 25th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks on 9/11, let the pain and suffering set into motion by the Bush administration be completely undone so that the healing may begin.