The US Senate on Tuesday voted 50-48 to approve a war powers resolution directing President Donald Trump to halt US military action against Iran, marking a rare congressional rebuke of the president and following a House vote earlier this month that approved the measure. The resolution, which lawmakers said responds to an armed conflict that began on February 28, passed the House with a 215-208 tally, including four Republicans and every Democrat voting in favor.
Lawmakers said this is the first time both chambers of Congress have passed a resolution expressly directing a president to remove US forces from hostilities under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, commonly called the War Powers Act. Supporters framed the votes as congressional oversight of military action; opponents and the White House called the measure unconstitutional and largely symbolic.
The Senate vote was nearly along party lines: four Republicans joined all but one Democrat in supporting the resolution, while two Republican senators did not vote. Republicans hold slim majorities in both chambers, making the cross-party support notable and signaling growing unease among some GOP members about the conflict and the administration’s approach.
How the resolution will affect the situation on the ground is unclear, especially as the Trump administration said it is working to negotiate a peace agreement with Iran. Under the War Powers Act the measure does not go to the White House for signature, and the White House has argued the resolution is not binding on constitutional grounds.
Legal experts say the question is likely to end up in court. “The executive branch will likely ignore it on constitutional grounds, and it’s not clear who might have standing to sue to enforce it,” said Scott Anderson, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and senior editor at Lawfare, adding he expected litigation to follow. The votes underscore a renewed willingness by Congress to assert war powers over presidential military decisions.
Original Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-senate-votes-to-halt-iran-war-in-rebuke-to-trump-11678357#publisher=newsstand
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Publish Date: 2026-06-24 03:40:00
