House approves amendment requiring Trump to obtain congressional approval for Iran strike

The House of Representatives has just passed its defense bill with an amendment requiring President Trump to receive approval from Congress before launching a military strike against Iran, The New York Times reports.

With a 251-170 vote, the amendment was added onto the House's defense bill, which subsequently passed; the measure received support from most Democrats as well as 27 Republicans, including Trump-ally Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.). The amendment has a self-defense exception, The Washington Post reports.

The House's vote comes weeks after Trump said he ordered a strike on Iran following the downing of a U.S. drone but called it off with 10 minutes to spare after deciding that this response would not be "proportionate." Trump has asserted that he does not need the approval from Congress to strike Iran, telling The Hill last month, "I do like keeping them abreast, but I don't have to do it legally."

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Although this amendment was approved for the House's version of the defense bill on Friday, the Times writes that the Senate will likely be looking to remove this provision after a similar amendment failed in the Republican-controlled chamber last month. "The president made it absolutely clear that he is not interested in starting a war with Iran," said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as that measure failed, per the Times. "Everybody ought to take a deep breath." Trump earlier this week threatened to veto the House's defense bill.