House Progressives Say Adieu and Thanks to 'Incomparable' Barbara Lee
"This country—and the world—owe you a great debt, Congresswoman," said the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
With colleagues applauding her "courage and tenacity," longtime U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee retired from Congress on Thursday, ending a career during which she was both praised and vilified for voting according to her convictions, and looking ahead to another potential leadership position in her home state of California.
The 78-year-old Democrat, who represents the state's 12th District in the East Bay, left office nine months after losing the U.S. Senate primary to Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who was sworn in last month and replaced the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
She was elected to the House for her first term in 1998, and just three years later, during her second term, cast the vote that made her a hero to many progressives and peace advocates.
Days after the World Trade Center and Pentagon were attacked on September 11, 2001, Lee was the lone member of Congress to vote against the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF)—a 60-word bill that gave the president the authority to use any and all "necessary and appropriate force" against any enemy, without congressional approval.
Twenty years after the vote, Lee wrote in the Los Angeles Times that it was "the most difficult vote" she ever cast.
"But I knew the last thing the country needed was to rush into war after 9/11, or ever, without proper deliberation by the people—represented by Congress—as the Constitution intended," she wrote.
"As I forge ahead, I wish you a bright future, always remembering it is our young people who deserve to inherit a clean planet and a peaceful world."
The vote led to death threats against the congresswoman, but as the Associated Pressreported, she spent the rest of her career in the House watching as many of her views came "to be respected, accepted, and even emulated."
In 2021, Lee sponsored legislation to repeal the 2002 AUMF, which she also voted against and which green-lit President George W. Bush's plan to invade Iraq.
The repeal legislation passed in the House in a vote of 268-161 and gathered 130 cosponsors, with a similar bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate.
"If you really believe that this is the right thing for the country, for your district, for the world, then you have to do it, and be damned everything else," Lee told the AP in a recent interview, reflecting on her vote in September 2001.
Lee also garnered support in 2007 for a bill she introduced to prevent the permanent stationing of U.S. Armed Forces in Iraq and U.S. economic control of oil resources there; that legislation also passed the House, with 77 lawmakers signing on as cosponsors.
"Congress will not be the same without the incomparable Barbara Lee," the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which Lee co-chaired from 2005-09, said Friday. "This country—and the world—owe you a great debt, Congresswoman. Thank you for your bold progressive leadership, unwavering moral clarity, and profound contributions over three decades of public service."
Lee's life in public service began when she volunteered as a community worker for the Black Panther Party. There she met Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman to be elected to Congress, who became her mentor. Lee worked on Chisholm's 1972 presidential campaign and later worked on Capitol Hill before running for office.
Lee co-founded and co-chaired the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus with Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), and consistently pushed to reduce Pentagon spending and invest in healthcare, housing, and other public services.
In addition to her support for limiting U.S. military action and spending, Lee was an early critic of the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funds from being used for abortion services—for example, through Medicaid—and called the law "blatant discrimination against poor women." Her position has become common among Democrats in recent years, with then presidential candidate Joe Biden reversing his support for the Hyde Amendment during the 2020 election.
Addressing her constituents in Oakland, Lee said on Thursday, "Together, as America’s most diverse community, we have raised our voices and pushed the envelope for peace, justice and equity."
"I have, and will continue to, fight for working families, the middle class, low-income, and poor people," she added. "As I forge ahead, I wish you a bright future, always remembering it is our young people who deserve to inherit a clean planet and a peaceful world. Listen to them, for they speak with clarity and deserve our support."
An open letter published last month urged Lee to run for mayor of the San Francisco Bay Area city.
"We know that to solve Oakland's problems and unlock its powerful potential, it is going to take a unique combination of courage and proven experience," read the letter. "Barbara Lee embodies that."
Lee said she plans to announce her intentions for her post-Congress career in early January.
