U.S. Senate vote to constrain Trump's actions in Iran fails | The Seattle Times

WASHINGTON — Hours after the Trump administration touted its Operation Epic Fury as a “resounding success” on Wednesday, Democratic senators mounted an unlikely bid to curb President Donald Trump’s ability to use additional military forces in Iran without congressional approval.

The measure failed** 53-47 **after Republicans blocked the effort, rejecting Democrats’ pleas to reassert Congress’s authority to weigh in on major military actions.

“American families are going to pay for Trump’s war,” Sen. Patty Murray said on the Senate floor before the vote. “It is up to our Congress to say enough. But we need Republicans to join us.”

The war powers resolution, co-sponsored by Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., would have directed the removal of U.S. armed forces from hostilities within or against Iran that have not been authorized by Congress. It was largely symbolic: If the measure had passed the Senate, it would have been unlikely to pass the House and receive Trump’s signature.

Still, Wednesday’s vote represents the first time Congress formally registered its opinion of a campaign Trump launched without its consent, affirming deep divides on Capitol Hill. Most Republicans approve of the operation, arguing that it was necessary for American national security, while most Democrats, including those in Washington state, condemn it. Paul was the only Republican to vote for the measure; Sen. John Fetterman, of Pennsylvania, was the only Democrat to vote against it.

“No one here mourns the supreme leader, but no one in this administration has a clear answer to what happens next,” Murray, Washington state’s senior Democrat, said on the Senate floor. “You don’t bring democracy to the Middle East with bombs.”

Lawmakers sped to bring the resolution to the floor this week, days after the Trump administration began a bombing campaign in Iran with the intent, Trump said Saturday, of replacing the country’s leaders and destroying its nuclear program.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the major attack by Israel and the U.S., Iranian state media confirmed early Sunday.Fighting has rippled outside of Iran as well,** **and at least six American service members have died in the conflict.

The majority of Washington state’s federal lawmakers — echoing Democratic lawmakers nationwide — quickly decried the attack, sharing statements within hours that called the operation an “unconstitutional war” and an “offensive use of military force.” The lawmakers said Trump overstepped his authority by striking the country without consulting Congress, and that the action risks tying the U.S. to an unending conflict.

Congress last declared war during World War II, but has since approved authorizations for the use of military force, including before President George W. Bush’s 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

“Today’s vote is the first vote in holding the president accountable to those constraints and doing our duty under the Constitution, which says clearly that only Congress can declare war,” Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said in a statement Wednesday after the failed vote.

“While deterring dangerous regimes from developing nuclear weapons is a critical mission, this effort has gone far beyond key strikes on timely, urgent targets,” Cantwell added.

At least one member of Congress from Washington supports the attack. Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, joined his GOP colleagues in applauding Trump’s decision over the weekend and, after receiving a classified briefing from administration officials, said he “was confident before and am more confident now.”

Rep. Dan Newhouse, the only other Republican in Washington state’s Congressional delegation, has not made a public statement on the issue and did not respond to The Seattle Times’ request for comment.

National polling shows that the majority of Americans disapprove of the conflict. Among Seattle-area Iranians on Saturday, many took to the streets to celebrate the administration’s move, while others worried it cued the start of a broader conflict that could destabilize the Middle East.

The Trump administration has since signaled conflict may last weeks, declining to state a specific time frame. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Wednesday the operation “has been a resounding success.”

“We expect to have complete and total dominance of Iranian airspace in the coming hours,” Leavitt said during a news briefing.

Meanwhile, U.S. senators delivered hours of impassioned speeches on the Senate floor. Democrats reiterated that Trump should have consulted Congress; Republicans rallied behind the president.

Congress has voted on multiple other war powers resolutions since Trump retook office — all of which have failed — as Democrats seek to rein in his administration’s aggressive foreign policy posture. Most recently, the Senate failed to advance such a resolution in January, after Trump deposed Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro.

Despite the unsuccessful attempts and symbolic nature of the resolutions, some Democrats have said it is crucial that federal lawmakers’ opinions on Trump’s actions be publicly noted.

“The American people deserve to know where Congress stands,” Cantwell said Wednesday.

Rep. Adam Smith, of Bellevue, on Saturday said that if lawmakers support a war in Iran, “they should at least be accountable for that.”

The House is set to vote Thursday on a similar war powers resolution regarding Iran. It will also likely fail. Both House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have commended the president’s operation in Iran.

“The President acted fully within his authority under the law, and consistent with the precedent set by presidents for the past four decades,” Johnson said on social media. “Efforts now to restrict the Commander in Chief from completing this limited but crucial mission would be both dangerous and irresponsible.”