The House passed a resolution on Wednesday to limit President Donald Trump’s war powers in Iran, a significant rebuke to Trump and his handling of the conflict.
Democrats have repeatedly forced votes in both the House and Senate to limit Trump’s war powers — a campaign that has gradually gained more GOP support in recent weeks.
The vote was 215 to 208, with Republican Representatives Thomas Massie, Brian Fitzpatrick, Tom Barrett and Warren Davidson crossing party lines to support the resolution.
The passage of the war powers resolution is the latest example of the GOP-controlled Congress pushing back against Trump’s agenda. Senate Republicans have rebelled in recent days over the controversial $1.8 billion “anti-gunfire” fund, which Trump supports but fears will lead to payoffs to his supporters who attacked police officers during the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. Senate Republicans on Wednesday formally removed funding for Trump’s ballroom security as part of his immigration package after the chamber’s official rules-keeper determined it violated budgetary rules.
The measure, known as a concurrent resolution, must be passed by the House on Wednesday, it must be approved by both chambers, but will not have to go to the President for signature.
The vote was 215 to 208, with Republican Representatives Thomas Massie, Brian Fitzpatrick, Tom Barrett and Warren Davidson crossing party lines to support the resolution.
The resolution was introduced by New York Democratic Representative Gregory Meeks, the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
This vote was originally set It was scheduled to take place on May 21, but it was abruptly canceled by GOP leaders as Republicans were on the verge of losing the vote due to absenteeism. At the time, Meeks told reporters that he thought House Speaker Mike Johnson was blocking a vote on the measure.
“A lot of my Republican colleagues are feeling the pressure at home when they’re looking at the price of food, the price of gas,” he previously told CNN.
Ahead of Wednesday’s vote, Johnson defended some GOP lawmakers’ opposition to reining in Trump’s war powers in Iran and warned it could have a “very negative” impact on the talks.
“I think taking away the ability to negotiate with the administration and the commander-in-chief is a very dangerous possibility. That’s what it does. It weakens us, our position, and our leverage in negotiating peace in that situation. ‘Operation Epic Fury’ is over,” he told CNN on Wednesday.
Johnson claimed that all US objectives in Iran were “well defined” and “achieved”, despite some lawmakers, including Republicans, expressing interest in obtaining more information from the administration.
He said, “The President is now in the process of concluding a peace agreement, and we have to give him the freedom to do that, and I think proposing war powers right now is very premature, and a very negative and dangerous thing for the country.”
The Pentagon, State Department and USAID inspectors general have launched a joint review of the US war with Iran, announcing in a press release on Wednesday that they are mandated by law to investigate foreign military operations lasting more than 60 days.
The declaration is significant because it indicates that monitors believe that, legally, the war has lasted more than 60 days since it began on February 28. Under the War Powers Act, the President is prohibited from keeping U.S. troops in active hostilities for more than 60 days without Congressional approval.
The administration never sought such approval for Operation Epic Fury, the name the US gave to its military campaign against Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last month that it was his understanding that the 60-day clock on the war was “reset” when President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire in April.
This story has been updated with additional details.
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