AFGHAN Service Act

IIA 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. J. RES. 12 To withdraw all United States Armed Forces from Afghanistan, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 4, 2019 Mr. PAUL (for himself and Mr. UDALL) introduced the following joint resolu- tion; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Re- lations JOINT RESOLUTION To withdraw all United States Armed Forces from Afghanistan, and for other purposes. Whereas the Joint Resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against those responsible for the at- tacks launched against the United States (Public Law 107–40) states, ‘‘That the President is authorized to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, author- ized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that oc- curred on September 11, 2001’’; Whereas since 2001, more than 3,002,635 men and women of the United States Armed Forces have deployed in sup- port of the Global War on Terrorism, with more than 1,400,000 of them deploying more than once, and these VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:46 Mar 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SJ12.IS SJ12 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •SJ 12 IS Americans who volunteered in a time of war have served their country honorably and with distinction; Whereas in November 2009 there were fewer than 100 Al- Qaeda members remaining in Afghanistan; Whereas on May 2, 2011, Osama Bin Laden, the founder of Al-Qaeda, was killed by United States Armed Forces in Pakistan; Whereas United States Armed Forces have successfully rout- ed Al-Qaeda from the battlefield in Afghanistan, thus ful- filling the original intent of Public Law 107–40 and the justification for the invasion of Afghanistan, but public support for United States continued presence in Afghani- stan has waned in recent years; Whereas an October 2018 poll found that 57 percent of Americans, including 69 percent of United States vet- erans, believe that all United States troops should be re- moved from Afghanistan; and Whereas in June 2018, the Department of Defense reported, ‘‘The al-Qa’ida threat to the United States and its allies and partners has decreased and the few remaining al- Qa’ida core members are focused on their own survival’’: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives 1 of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This joint resolution may be cited as the ‘‘American 4 Forces Going Home After Noble Service Act’’ or the ‘‘AF- 5 GHAN Service Act’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:46 Mar 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ12.IS SJ12 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •SJ 12 IS SEC. 2. WITHDRAWAL OF UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES 1 FROM AFGHANISTAN. 2 (a) PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 45 days after 3 the date of the enactment of this joint resolution, the Sec- 4 retary of Defense, or designee, in cooperation with the 5 heads of all other relevant Federal agencies involved in 6 the conflict in Afghanistan shall— 7 (1)(A) formulate a plan for the orderly draw- 8 down and withdrawal of all soldiers, sailors, airmen, 9 and Marines from Afghanistan who were involved in 10 operations intended to provide security to the people 11 of Afghanistan, including policing action, or military 12 actions against paramilitary organizations inside Af- 13 ghanistan, excluding members of the military as- 14 signed to support United States embassies or con- 15 sulates, or intelligence operations authorized by Con- 16 gress; and 17 (B) appear before the relevant congressional 18 committees to explain the proposed implementation 19 of the plan formulated under subparagraph (A); and 20 (2)(A) formulate a framework for political rec- 21 onciliation and popular democratic elections inde- 22 pendent of United States involvement in Afghani- 23 stan, which may be used by the Government of Af- 24 ghanistan to ensure that any political party that 25 meets the requirements under Article 35 of the Con- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:46 Mar 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ12.IS SJ12 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •SJ 12 IS stitution of Afghanistan is permitted to participate 1 in general elections; and 2 (B) appear before the relevant congressional 3 committees to explain the proposed implementation 4 of the framework formulated under subparagraph 5 (A). 6 (b) REMOVAL AND BONUSES.—Not later than 1 year 7 after the date of the enactment of this joint resolution— 8 (1) all United States Armed Forces in Afghani- 9 stan as of such date of enactment shall be with- 10 drawn and removed from Afghanistan; and 11 (2) the Secretary of Defense shall provide all 12 members of the United States Armed Forces who 13 were deployed in support of the Global War on Ter- 14 ror with a $2,500 bonus to recognize that these 15 Americans have served in the Global War On Ter- 16 rorism exclusively on a volunteer basis and to dem- 17 onstrate the heartfelt gratitude of our Nation. 18 (c) REPEAL OF AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF MILI- 19 TARY FORCE.—The Authorization for Use of Military 20 Force (Public Law 107–40) is repealed effective on the 21 earlier of— 22 (1) the date that is 395 days after the date of 23 the enactment of this joint resolution: or 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:46 Mar 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SJ12.IS SJ12 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •SJ 12 IS (2) the date on which the Secretary of Defense 1 certifies that all United States Armed Forces in- 2 volved in operations or military actions in Afghani- 3 stan (as described in subsection (a)(1)(A)) have de- 4 parted from Afghanistan. 5 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:46 Mar 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SJ12.IS SJ12 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS