Rep. Seth Moulton knocked Joe Biden over his previous support for the Iraq War, using the former Vice President’s reversal on support for government-funded abortions as his peg.
Biden announced here on Thursday that he no longer supports the Hyde Amendment, dropping his long-held support for the measure that blocks federal funds from being used for most abortions. The shift came after a host of Biden’s 2020 Democratic opponents lobbed heavily criticism this week at his position, which was seen as out of step with the mainstream of the Democratic Party.
“Bravo to @JoeBiden for doing the right thing and reversing his longstanding support for the Hyde Amendment,” Moulton tweeted Friday. “It takes courage to admit when you’re wrong, especially when those decisions affect millions of people. Now do the Iraq War.”
Then-Sen. Biden, as well as other Democrats at the time, voted in favor of authorizing the Iraq War in 2002. Moulton, despite serving four tours in Iraq, opposed the war and became a vocal critic of the conflict after returning home. The candidate often describes how he felt compelled to serve even though he did not support the war.
Biden, despite his early support, later became a critic of the Bush administration’s handling of the war.
Moulton previously told CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” earlier this month that Biden was wrong to vote in favor of authorizing the use of military force against Iraq in 2002 when he was a senator.
“It was a mistake,” Moulton said. “Because we should’ve been a lot more careful about going into Iraq. We should have questioned the intelligence. We should have made sure that we exhausted every opportunity before we put young American lives in danger.”
Moulton is not the only 2020 Democrat who has used the Iraq War to knock Biden.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders used that war, along with a host of trade policies, to draw a distinction between he and Biden.
“I helped lead the fight against (permanent normal trade relations) with China; he voted for it. I strongly opposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership; he supported it. I voted against the war in Iraq; he voted for it,” Sanders said on “Anderson Cooper 360.”
Moulton, who announced his 2020 campaign in late April, is struggling to get traction in the contest. With only a week before the Democratic National Committee determines which candidates have qualified for the first set of debates later this month in Miami, Moulton appears to be on the verge of not making the cut.
CNN’s Eric Bradner and Devan Cole contributed to this report
