U.S. House Passes War Powers Resolution Rebuking President Donald Trump Over Iran Conflict

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a Democratic-led war powers resolution directing President Donald Trump to withdraw U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran or win approval from Congress to continue, in a 215-208 vote with four Republicans joining Democrats.

“Donald Trump reacted this Thursday with fury to the biggest setback he has suffered so far in the United States Congress over the Iran war”

ABC

The resolution came after the House had left for its Memorial Day recess May 21 and after Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and most Republicans opposed it, with Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., calling the action “just a total BS vote.”

ABC

The vote was described as a rare rebuke of Trump’s handling of the conflict, and the measure was offered by Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee.

The House resolution was framed as symbolic rather than an immediate end to the conflict, because it “directs Trump to remove U.S. armed forces from hostilities with Iran” unless Congress votes to declare war or authorizes using military force, but it “would not force him to end the conflict.”

In response to the House vote, President Donald Trump slammed Congress’ efforts to restrain him from launching new attacks against Iran without approval and said he wasn’t concerned about the Senate joining the House in adopting a resolution invoking the 1973 War Powers Act against him.

Trump told The Independent in a phone interview that it was “a meaningless, unpatriotic waste of time, very unpatriotic to do, but that's okay — it means nothing,” and he claimed that “everybody” involved was “grandstanding.”

Al Jazeera

Trump also accused Democrats of being “fueled by Trump Derangement Syndrome” and said they “would rather have our Country fail than give me another, of many, victories,” while he attacked four Republicans who aligned with Democrats.

The Independent reported that Trump said the House had voted to “limit my War Powers, right in the middle of my final negotiations to end the War with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” and he later called the four Republicans “grandstanders” who “should be ashamed of themselves.”

The House vote set up a Senate test, because the resolution “still needs approval from the Republican-controlled US Senate,” and even then it could face further political and constitutional conflict over how war powers apply.

The ABC reported that the House vote was 215 to 208 with four Republicans crossing the floor, and it said the resolution would not force Trump to end the conflict entirely but could provide “the first legal step to prevent further military action.”

The Star said the House resolution still needs approval from the Republican-controlled US Senate and that even if it were successful, it was “unlikely to fully curb military action against Iran,” while also noting that the Senate advanced a similar resolution in May after seven previous failed attempts.

NPR described the House vote as mostly symbolic and said that even if the measure passed in Congress, it would almost certainly be vetoed by President Trump, while Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Penn., said after the vote, “we have to follow the law,” adding, “You either follow the law or you change the law. You can't violate the law. That's not an option.”