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Washington — The House declined to limit President Trump from taking further military action against Iran without congressional support, a day after a similar effort fell short in the Senate.
The war powers vote came amid concerns that the U.S. could be engaged in another lengthy war in the Middle East, and as polls show the American public largely disapproves of the Iran strikes.
The measure failed in a 212 to 219 vote, with four Democrats joining all but two Republicans to kill it.
GOP Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who has been one of the few Republican critics of the Trump administration’s offensives against Venezuela and Iran, introduced the war powers resolution days before the U.S. bombed three of Iran’s nuclear facilities last June. He backed away from forcing a vote last year after a ceasefire was reached.
The resolution would have directed the president “to remove United States Armed Forces from unauthorized hostilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said the resolution “plays right into the hands of the enemy.” On Wednesday, Johnson argued the Iran operation has been “necessary, lawful and effective, and reversing it now would weaken America.” Johnson argued that the U.S. is “not at war,” and that the offensive is a military operation that is “limited in its scope.”
“Congress has a constitutional right to exercise its oversight authority, and we will, but we also have a duty and obligation not to undercut our own national security,” he said.
Massie speculated that his colleagues don’t want a recorded vote on the issue because the U.S. has “a terrible track record of meddling in the Middle East.”
“They don’t want their name associated with this when it doesn’t turn out well,” Massie said during floor debate. “But Congress cannot be bothered with its constitutional duty because for many in this chamber, it’s easier to simply allow someone else’s sons and daughters to be sent to combat without their vote. And to be clear, we aren’t even here to declare war today.”
The Constitution grants only Congress the power to declare war. But presidents have avoided getting Congress’ authorization for major military operations in recent years. And Republicans in Congress have so far shown little appetite for flexing their power to limit the president’s authority to conduct strikes, though some have indicated that could change if the conflict lasts for more than a few weeks, or if Mr. Trump sends U.S. ground troops into Iran.
Massie and Republican Rep. Warren Davidson of Ohio broke with Mr. Trump. Democratic Reps. Greg Landsman of Ohio, Jared Golden of Maine, Henry Cuellar of Texas and Juan Vargas of California voted with nearly all Republicans to defeat it.
Davidson announced his support for the resolution Wednesday on the House floor, saying “the moral hazard posed by a government no longer constrained by our Constitution is a grave threat.”
“Unfortunately, Republicans now want to claim they can’t answer: What is a war?” Davidson said.
In a statement last month, Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey initially said he opposed the resolution because it “would restrict the flexibility needed to respond to real and evolving threats and risks, signaling weakness at a dangerous moment.” But he ultimately voted for it.
Gottheimer and a handful of other Democrats are backing a separate resolution that directs the president to remove U.S. armed forces from hostilities with Iran within 30 days of the Feb. 28 attack without congressional approval.
The lawmakers behind the push are aiming to block further military action without authorization under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which Congress passed in response to the Vietnam War as a check on the president’s power to enter armed conflict without consent from the legislative branch. It requires the president to consult with Congress in “every possible instance” ahead of the introduction of any military forces. And it also requires the president to report to Congress within 48 hours of deploying forces into hostilities if lawmakers haven’t authorized a declaration of war, while capping any unauthorized engagement at 60 days.
GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, who supported a recent Venezuela war powers resolution, backed Mr. Trump on this vote. But Bacon noted earlier this week that the military operation could last for weeks or longer and members could “always revise our opinions” as time goes on.
Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, said she’s open to changing her mind down the road if the war lasts longer than estimated or ground troops are deployed.
“If this thing goes beyond a few weeks, I’m going to have a lot more concerns,” she said this week. “If ground troops get involved, I think that’s a very different conversation.”
Democrats, however, say the Trump administration has not provided sufficient answers on the rationale for attacking Iran or the imminence of the threat.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, said Thursday that the Trump administration’s explanations for the war “are all over the place.”
“We just need our Republican colleagues to get some guts at this moment,” Jeffries said. “Get some guts and start acting like you’re part of a separate and co-equal branch of government.”
