House and Senate Democrats plan to force votes calling on President Donald Trump to get congressional approval before launching any military campaign against Iran. Trump made a high-profile announcement of an Israel-Iran ceasefire on Monday, only to see it apparently fall apart overnight.
But it still seems unlikely any War Powers resolution will pass. And the House vote in particular may not happen until mid-July, weeks from now.
Thanks to GOP support — or the unwillingness by Republicans to confront Trump over Iran — the president will have launched a military campaign against a longtime U.S. nemesis, weathered a retaliatory Iranian missile attack and then declared victory.
Trump would’ve shown that – once again – Congress has little incentive or political will to rein in a president’s use of American military force even without approval.
Trump – who heads to a NATO meeting in The Hague today – took a huge gamble with his MAGA base in attacking Iran. So far, he’s kept GOP lawmakers and MAGA in line.
Hill action. The House and Senate will have separate briefings on Iran today from senior Trump administration officials. The briefers will include Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine and other senior State and Pentagon officials.
House Republicans and Democrats both will hold private party meetings today, with the latest events in the Middle East sure to be at the top of those conversations.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) has a War Powers Resolution that will ripen on Friday, meaning it can be called up then for a vote.
But with Senate Republicans moving ahead on reconciliation, Kaine and GOP senators suggested a vote on his resolution could happen as soon as Wednesday if the two sides can reach a deal. We reported this on Monday morning.
“Sen. Schumer is doing a really good job. He’s negotiating with [Senate Majority Leader John] Thune on the timing,” said Kaine, who noted there would be a classified briefing on Tuesday. “It could be as early as Wednesday, as late as Friday. They’re working on it.”
Other than Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Senate Republicans overwhelmingly appear ready to back Trump and oppose Kaine’s resolution. And Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) – who is strongly pro-Israel — sounds like he’s ready to vote no as well.
House action. As we scooped for you on Sunday, Democratic Reps. Greg Meeks (N.Y.), Jim Himes (Conn.) and Adam Smith (Wash.) – ranking members of the Foreign Affairs, Intelligence and Armed Services panels – introduced their own War Powers Resolution on Monday.
Yet the Meeks-Himes-Smith resolution doesn’t ripen for 15 calendar days, although that doesn’t include recesses. If the House is out next week for the July 4th holiday as scheduled — this depends on what happens with the One Big, Beautiful Bill in the Senate — a House vote on a War Powers resolution may not happen until about July 18 or 19, nearly a month from now, per Democratic aides.
The House also can’t call up Kaine’s resolution if it were to somehow pass that chamber because of procedural differences in how the resolutions are structured.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has introduced his own War Powers Resolution along with Democrat Ro Khanna (Calif.), but told us Monday night he was backing off.
Massie has come under tremendous criticism from Trump, who is now searching for a primary opponent to take on the eight-term GOP lawmaker. Massie voted against the BBB in the House — one of only two Republicans to do so — as well as openly questioning whether Trump had the constitutional authority to attack Iran.
That doesn’t mean the resolution can’t be called up for a vote, but Massie won’t be doing it.
“It might not be necessary,” Massie said. “If there’s no hostilities. The resolution is to withdraw or end hostilities.”
Massie then joked he’d like the “same deal on the ceasefire with the president.”
