The 60 Words of Infinite War | Radiolab Podcast

From the Radiolab podcast: It only took 60 words to change the way the U.S. wages war.
In the hours after the attacks of September. 11, 2001, a lawyer sat down in front of a computer and started writing a legal justification for taking action against those responsible. The language that he drafted and that President George W. Bush signed into law - called the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) - has at its heart one single sentence, 60 words long. Over the last decade, those 60 words have become the legal foundation for the "war on terror."
In this collaboration with BuzzFeed, reporter Gregory Johnsen tells us the story of how this has come to be one of the most important, confusing, troubling sentences of the last two decades. We go into the meetings that took place in the chaotic days just after 9/11, speak with Congresswoman Barbara Lee and former Congressman Ron Dellums about the vote on the AUMF. We hear from former White House and State Department lawyers John Bellinger and Harold Koh. We learn how this legal language unleashed Guantanamo, Navy Seal raids and drone strikes. And we speak with journalist Daniel Klaidman, legal expert Benjamin Wittes and Virginia Senator Tim Kaine about how these words came to be interpreted, and what they mean for the future of war and peace.
Finally, we check back in with Congresswoman Lee, and talk to Yale law professor and national security expert Oona Hathaway, about how to move on from the original 60 words.
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Original episode produced by Matt Kielty and Kelsey Padgett with original music by Dylan Keefe. Update reported and produced by Sarah Qari and Soren Wheeler.
Special thanks to Brian Finucane.
Illustration by Lucy Engelman [www.lucyengelman.com]
Video by Michael Snyder and Kim Nowacki.
This episode of Radiolab was originally published on podcast platforms with the title "60 Words, 20 Years."

[@brittanyengels913]

Aww, I miss Jad and Robert. Used to listen a ton....

[@jmb9701]

Back when Radiolab was about learning and not identity politics.

[@FortunateJuice]

The original story was great, but the end of the video is jibberish.

[@ShadyForest]

What did you feel was gibberish about the update section?

[@giomorales3977]

@@ShadyForest hey gang what doing