The House narrowly rejected President Donald Trump’s war powers resolution Thursday to stop his attacks on Iran, an early sign of Congressional unease over the rapidly escalating conflict that is realigning U.S. priorities at home and abroad.
This is the second vote in as many days after the Senate defeated a similar bill along party lines. Members of Congress are faced with the sudden reality of having to represent wary Americans in times of war and all that comes with it, with lives lost, funds spent, and alliances tested by the president’s unilateral decision to go to war with Iran.
Although the 212-219 House tally was expected to be tight, the results provided a clear snapshot of political support and opposition to U.S.-Israeli military operations and Trump’s rationale for bypassing Congress, which has the authority to declare war. On Capitol Hill, the conflict quickly brought echoes of the long wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and many September 11 veterans now serve in Congress.
“Donald Trump is no king,” said Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “If he believes that going to war with Iran is in our national interest, he should go to Congress and make his case.”
The House also approved a separate bill identifying Iran as the largest state sponsor of terrorism.
Republicans largely support Trump and most Democrats oppose the war.
Trump’s Republicans, who barely control the House and Senate, see the conflict with Iran not as the start of a new war but as the end of a government that has long threatened the West. The operation killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. While some see this as an opportunity for regime change, others warn of a chaotic power vacuum.
Representative Brian Mast, a Florida Republican who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, publicly thanked Trump for taking action against Iran, saying the president was using his constitutional powers to defend the United States against the “imminent threat” posed by Iran.
Mast, an Army veteran who worked as a bomb disposal expert in Afghanistan, said the war powers resolution effectively requires “the president to do nothing.”
From the Democratic Party’s perspective, Trump’s attack on Iran, influenced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is a war of choice that tests the constitutional balance of power.
“The planners weren’t messing around,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin, arguing that the Constitution states that only Congress can decide war issues. “It’s up to us.”
A cross-coalition emerged among members of Congress. Two Republicans joined most Democrats in voting for the war powers resolution, and four Democrats joined Republicans in rejecting it.
If the War Powers Resolution were signed into law, it would immediately halt Trump’s ability to wage war unless Congress authorizes military action. The president is likely to reject this.
Trump officials changed rationale for war
Trump is struggling to win support in a dispute that has lasted nearly a week as Americans of all political persuasions buy stocks. Administration officials spent hours behind closed doors at the Capitol this week, assuring lawmakers that the situation was under control.
Six U.S. service members were killed in a drone strike in Kuwait over the weekend, and President Trump said more Americans could be killed. Thousands of Americans abroad scrambled to board flights, and many lined phone lines in congressional offices seeking help to escape the Middle East.
President Trump said Thursday that he should have a hand in choosing Iran’s new leader. But House Speaker Mike Johnson said this week that the United States has enough problems at home and has no plans to engage in a “nation-building enterprise.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the war could extend for eight weeks, twice as long as the president initially expected. Trump left open the possibility of sending U.S. troops to the operation, which was primarily a bombing campaign. More than 1,230 people have died in Iran.
The administration has said its goal is to destroy ballistic missiles that it believes are protecting Iran’s nuclear program. Israel also said it was ready to act and that American bases would face retaliation if the United States did not attack Iran first. The United States said it torpedoed an Iranian warship near Sri Lanka on Wednesday.
“This administration can’t even give a direct answer to the question of why we started a preemptive war,” said Rep. Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky who is an outlier in his party.
Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, who joined forces to force the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, also pushed the war powers resolution to the floor over the objections of Johnson’s GOP leadership. Republican lawmaker Warren Davidson (Ohio), a former Army Ranger, also voted in favor. Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar of Texas, Jared Golden of Maine, Greg Landsman of Ohio and Juan Vargas of California voted against.
Johnson warned that it would be “dangerous” to limit the president’s powers while the U.S. military is already in conflict.
“Congress must stand with the president to finally bring closure to this dark chapter in history,” said Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas.
Representative Yassamin Ansari, the daughter of Iranian immigrants who fled their homeland, said she opposed the regime but was concerned that a democratic transition for the Iranian people never seemed to be a priority for Trump or the officials who reported to Congress.
“War has profound and devastating consequences for our troops, the American people, and the world,” she said. “It is the most serious decision a country can make.”
Other Democrats have proposed an alternative resolution that would allow the president to continue the war for 30 days before receiving approval from Congress. A vote is not yet expected.
Senators sit at their desks for a solemn vote
In the Senate, Republican leaders successfully, albeit narrowly, defeated a series of war powers resolutions related to several different conflicts during President Trump’s second term. But this was different.
Underscoring the seriousness of the second Wednesday, Democratic senators filled the room and sat at their desks while the vote took place.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said every senator would choose a side. “Will you stand with the American people, who are exhausted by perpetual wars in the Middle East?” he asked. Or is it as if Trump and Hegseth are “pushing us into another war”?
“Democrats would rather obstruct Donald Trump than destroy Iran’s national nuclear program,” said Sen. John Barrasso, the second-ranking Republican in the Senate.
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