House to vote on limiting Trump's war powers in wake of Iran crisis

Congressional Democrats were reportedly rattled Tuesday night upon learning of the Iranian airstrikes against a military base hosting U.S. soldiers in Iraq. So much so, it seems, that they thought about stopping short of repudiating the White House for its actions against Tehran. But they've apparently regrouped and are ready once again to try to curb President Trump's war powers.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement Wednesday that the House would will move forward with a war powers resolution Thursday in the hopes of limiting Trump's military actions against Iran. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) will lead the charge, and the resolution will go the Rules Committee on Wednesday evening before heading to the House Floor the following day.

Within the legislation is the resolution to repeal the 2002 Iraq Authorization for Use of Military Force. Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) has been championing the effort to repeal the law for some time.

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Congress, of course, has the constitutional power to declare war, but because of laws like the AUMF, things haven't really worked out that way for a while. Tim O'Donnell