House delivers rebuke to Trump with vote to end Iran war

The measure is largely symbolic but sends a message to the administration.

The House of Representatives on Wednesday adopted a resolution to curb President Donald Trump’s Iran war powers by a vote of 215-208 -- delivering a major rebuke to the administration’s handling of the three-month-old conflict for the first time.

Four Republicans -- Reps. Warren Davidson of Ohio, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Tom Barrett of Michigan and Thomas Massie of Kentucky -- joined Democrats to adopt the resolution. The successful bipartisan vote, while largely symbolic, sends a strong message to the administration and expresses the sentiment of the lower chamber.

The concurrent resolution -- which would call on Trump to terminate the use of U.S. armed forces in hostilities against Iran or any part of its military or government unless a declaration of war or authorization to use force is enacted -- now heads to the Senate. Even if the Senate follows suit, a concurrent resolution does not carry the weight of law and is not presented to the president or subject to veto.

“Congress has followed the Constitution today -- Democrats and Republicans said enough is enough. It is time to end this war. It is time for the president to tell the American people why we entered this war,” House Foreign Affairs ranking Democrat Gregory Meeks told reporters after the vote.

This was the fourth time the House held a vote on a Democrat-led Iran war powers resolution since the start of the war. All previous efforts narrowly failed in the House, including on May 14 when a similar resolution failed in a tie vote.

“I think it is a very dangerous prospect to take away from the administration and the commander-in-chief right now the ability to negotiate,” Speaker Mike Johnson said ahead of the vote.

Before last week’s Memorial Day recess, GOP leaders abruptly pulled a vote on this resolution over attendance issues -- which prompted outrage from Democrats, who were confident the resolution would pass.

A White House official brushed off its passage Wednesday, saying it was “driven by absences” from Republicans. There were six Republicans absent. Even if all members were present, the vote still would have passed.

“President Trump will continue to protect our national security using his constitutional authority as Commander-in-Chief while being transparent with Congress,” the official added.