On Thursday, the United States Senate voted down a War Powers resolution that was seeking to rein in President Trump's offensive operations against Iran. The resolution failed by a vote of 47 to 49.
Senate Republicans on Thursday defeated a motion to advance a war powers resolution that would direct President Trump to withdraw U.S. troops from hostilities against Iran, even though a growing number of GOP lawmakers are voicing concerns about mounting casualties and how long the war has dragged on.
The chamber voted 47-49 on a motion to discharge the war powers resolution out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) crossed the aisle to vote with Democrats in support of it.
There were a few party defections on both sides, none of which were particularly unexpected.
Centrist Sen. John Fetterman (Pa.) was the only Democrat to vote against the motion to advance the resolution.
Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who have previously voted for resolutions to curtail Trump’s authority as commander in chief, missed the vote.
Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Katie Britt (R-Ala.) were also absent.
The measure passed in the House of Representatives on Thursday morning, by a vote of 214 to 208. The Republican House members who voted for the measure were:
- Tom Barrett (MI-07)
- Warren Davidson (OH-08)
- Thomas Massie (KY-04)
- Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01)
Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT) had some powerful remarks against the resolution.
“This regime that we are fighting does not care about our partisan politics. They don’t care who you voted for, who you pray to, or where you live. They want to kill all of us and they don’t just say it, they actually do it,” he said.
He's not wrong. The Iranian regime has been carrying out offensive operations against American installations, American military members, and American civilians for almost half a century. They are the world's foremost state sponsor of Islamic terror, funding, training and equipping terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. And, until recently, they were working busily on developing a nuclear explosive, and President Trump was correct in pointing out that, had they obtained a nuclear weapon, they would have used it, as fast as they could deliver it to a target in Israel - or the United States.
Read More: Four GOP Senators Join Democrats to Rebuke Trump on Iran, Hand Tehran a Talking Point
This resolution, like any piece of legislation, amounts to nothing without the president's signature, and President Trump would certainly have vetoed the resolution had it reached his desk. The vote margins don't indicate that any vote to override that veto would be successful. So, the current operations against Iran will, for the time being, continue.
In June, the House and Senate passed a nonbinding resolution, which has no force of law, directing the president to halt the operations against Iran, unless authorized by a separate declaration of war and/or congressional authorization. The president is under no obligation to heed that resolution, and he (obviously) has not done so.
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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