US Senate blocks bid to curb Trump's Iran war powers

The Senate voted 52-47 against advancing the war powers resolution, the latest in a series of attempts by Democrats to reassert Congress's constitutional authority over decisions to wage war. Kentucky Republican Rand Paul was the only member of his party to support the measure, while Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted against it. Republican Senator Jim Justice did not vote.

The resolution would have required Trump to seek approval from Congress before continuing military operations against Iran. Supporters said lawmakers had a constitutional responsibility to decide whether U.S. involvement in the conflict should continue.

The administration has argued that the president's actions are lawful and fall within his authority as commander-in-chief. Most Republicans in Congress have echoed that position, while Democrats say the White House is bypassing Congress on a decision that amounts to war.

Speaking ahead of the vote, Senator Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, urged colleagues to support the measure, warning that the conflict could become a prolonged military engagement. Republican Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch rejected that argument, accusing supporters of the resolution of effectively aiding Iran.

It was the fourth time Democrats had forced a Senate vote on war powers legislation since the war began. Previous efforts met similar resistance, with Paul consistently emerging as the only Republican willing to break ranks.

The vote came as diplomatic efforts to secure a broader settlement remained stalled. President Trump said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday that the war was nearing an end, while Pakistan's army chief arrived in Tehran in an effort to prevent a renewed escalation after recent peace talks ended without a breakthrough.

Public opinion polls have shown limited support for the conflict, particularly among Democrats. A Reuters/Ipsos poll published in March found that 60% of Americans opposed U.S. military strikes on Iran, although Republican voters largely backed the campaign.

The Senate vote followed growing debate in Congress over the administration's handling of the war and its broader foreign policy agenda. Democratic leaders have pledged to continue introducing war powers resolutions until hostilities end or Congress formally authorizes military action.

A similar measure has also been considered in the House of Representatives, where a small group of Republicans has occasionally joined Democrats in challenging the administration's approach to the conflict.

The dispute centers on whether the conflict's timeline should be measured from the start of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February or from an April ceasefire that the administration argues effectively reset the legal clock under war powers legislation.

Despite the latest congressional challenge, the Senate vote highlighted Trump's continued grip on most Republican lawmakers, even as some members of the party have shown increasing willingness to oppose the White House on selected spending and foreign policy issues ahead of November's midterm elections.