What happened The US House of Representatives has approved legislation aimed at preventing Donald Trump from expanding military operations against Iran, marking the latest effort by lawmakers to reassert congressional authority over the conflict.
The measure passed 215-208, with four Republican representatives breaking ranks to support the Democrats. It is the fourth time that the House has attempted to place limits on the president’s ability to continue the war, which began in February.
Who said what This was “a significant bipartisan rebuke of President Trump’s illegal and costly war in Iran and the first step towards ending it once and for all”, said Representative Gregory Meeks, a senior Democrat and co-sponsor of the resolution.
The move was the “latest reflection of divisions between Republicans in Congress and the president on a range of issues” as their “interests diverge in the run-up to the mid-term congressional elections”, said Robert Jimison and Megan Mineiro in The New York Times.
What next? The proposal must now clear the Republican-controlled Senate, which approved a similar resolution last month. But even if it passes, Trump could veto the measure, meaning its supporters would need two-thirds majorities in both chambers to override the president and make the restrictions law.
The Pentagon, State Department and USAID inspectors general have opened a joint review of the US war with Iran. The “announcement is significant”, said Camila DeChalus on CNN, because it acknowledges that the conflict has exceeded the 60-day threshold in the War Powers Resolution that bars a president from continuing military action without congressional approval.
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