The US Senate on Wednesday rejected a bipartisan resolution that sought to limit President Donald Trump’s authority to continue military strikes on Iran, in a narrow vote that reflected congressional support for a campaign launched without explicit new authorization from lawmakers. The measure, introduced by Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican Rand Paul, would have required US forces to withdraw from hostilities against Iran unless Congress authorized the campaign; it failed 53–47 along party lines with Republicans holding the majority.
The vote came five days into a rapidly expanding conflict that the story says has already killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several senior figures in Tehran, and in which US troops reportedly died in an Iranian attack on a US base in Kuwait. Democrats argued the president bypassed Congress when he ordered the air campaign and said the administration has offered shifting justifications for the strikes.
Senator Kaine, speaking to AFP after a classified briefing by administration officials, said: “Let me say it this way, there was no presentation of any evidence in that room… that suggested that the US faced any imminent threat from Iran.” Many Republicans, however, rallied behind the president, though some signaled their support could erode if the war expands or drags on.
Senator Lindsey Graham, a leading Trump ally in the Senate, posted on X that “Roadside bombs coming out of Iran have maimed and killed hundreds, if not thousands, of Americans,” and added, “They mean it when they say ‘death to America.’ I’m glad we didn’t let it go further. I’m glad we didn’t let them build more missiles.”
For the measure to pass the Senate, Democrats would have needed at least four Republicans to join Rand Paul; one Democrat, Pennsylvania centrist John Fetterman, opposed the resolution. Even if it had cleared both the Senate and the House — where a similar vote was expected the following day — the administration could have vetoed the bill, and Congress would have required a nearly impossible two‑thirds majority in both chambers to override a presidential veto.
Governments worldwide scrambled to evacuate citizens caught up in the Middle East crisis, triggered by US‑Israeli strikes and followed by retaliatory missile and drone attacks across the Gulf. Cities long seen as insulated from regional turmoil, including Dubai and Riyadh, were reported drawn into the widening crisis.
The congressional debate reflected wider unease on Capitol Hill about the scope and likely duration of the military operation. Administration officials told lawmakers in classified briefings that the operation could last weeks and might require additional funding from Congress; lawmakers from both parties said the Pentagon could soon seek emergency funds to replenish weapons stockpiles and sustain the campaign.
The resolution invoked the 1973 War Powers Act, passed after the Vietnam War, which allows Congress to force votes on military engagements and limits unauthorized conflicts to 60 days. Democrats acknowledged the measure faced steep odds but said forcing lawmakers to take a public position on the war was essential.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Original Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/israel-iran-war-us-senate-rejects-bid-to-curb-trumps-iran-war-powers-11169831#publisher=newsstand
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Publish Date: 2026-03-05 04:37:00
