The Senate voted 47-49 against advancing a resolution that would have required President Donald Trump to withdraw U.S. forces from hostilities involving Iran unless Congress granted specific authorization, hours after the House approved a separate war powers measure.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The Senate on Thursday rejected an effort to restrict President Donald Trump’s authority to continue military operations against Iran, defeating a war powers resolution in a 47-49 vote as the conflict entered another period of intensified U.S. strikes.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine was the only Republican to vote with Democrats in support of advancing the resolution, while Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to oppose it. Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, both of whom have previously supported similar attempts to limit presidential war powers, did not vote.
The Senate action came shortly after the House voted 214-208 to approve a separate measure challenging Trump’s authority to continue the Iran campaign without additional congressional authorization. Republican Reps. Tom Barrett of Michigan, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie of Kentucky joined Democrats in supporting the House measure.
The Senate resolution was introduced by Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and would have directed the president to “remove the United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Iran, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or a specific authorization for use of military force,” according to CBS News.
“The Senate rejected the latest attempt to rein in President Trump’s war powers in Iran on Thursday, soon after the House adopted a separate measure rebuking the president amid escalations in the conflict in recent days,” CBS News reported.
“In a 47 to 49 vote, one Republican — Susan Collins of Maine — joined Democrats in voting to advance the measure. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the sole Democrat to oppose. Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky, who have previously supported similar war powers efforts, did not vote.”
The congressional votes occurred nearly five months after Israeli and U.S. forces launched joint strikes against Iran in late February. The conflict escalated again earlier this month after a ceasefire agreement collapsed following Iranian attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and strikes against military bases in Jordan.
U.S. forces launched their 12th consecutive night of attacks against targets in Iran on Wednesday evening as Washington continued efforts to weaken Tehran’s military capabilities and protect commercial shipping through the region.
Eighteen U.S. service members have been killed in action in the Middle East since the Iran war began.
The House vote demonstrated that a small group of Republicans remained willing to join Democrats in seeking additional congressional control over the conflict. The Senate result, however, prevented the chamber’s resolution from advancing and left Trump’s current military authority unchanged.
The votes also reflected continuing disagreement in Congress over the constitutional division of war powers between the legislative and executive branches. Supporters of the resolutions argued that prolonged hostilities against Iran should require a declaration of war or a specific authorization for the use of military force, while opponents declined to impose the proposed withdrawal requirement as American forces remained engaged in active operations.
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