House approves war powers resolution to restrict Trump on Iran
Washington — The House of Representatives delivered a sharp rebuke to President Trump over his use of U.S. military power in the Middle East, approving a measure, relating to the War Powers Resolution of 1983, to restrict his authority to strike Iran without congressional approval. The resolution passed by a vote of 224 to 194 and now goes to the Senate. Eight Democrats joined Republicans in opposing the resolution, while three Republicans voted in favor. Seven of the eight Democrats who voted with Republicans are freshmen.
The bill is what's known as a "concurrent resolution," meaning it requires only the approval of both chambers of Congress and does not go to the president for his signature. Republicans argue this makes the bill non-binding and largely symbolic.
The vote on the resolution, which was sponsored by freshman Democrat congresswoman and former intelligence analyst Elissa Slotkin, comes nearly a week after Mr. Trump authorized a strike to kill Qassem Soleimani, Iran's top military leader. Democrats and some Republicans expressed outrage that the president failed to consult Congress in advance of the strike, seeing it as overreach of executive power.
The Iranians retaliated for the strike on Wednesday, launching ballistic missiles against two bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq. But the strikes caused no casualties, and on Wednesday Mr. Trump said Iran appeared to be backing down, calming fears about a potential all-out confrontation that might have quickly spiraled out of control.
What the resolution says
The concurrent resolution "directs the President to terminate the use of United States Armed Forces to engage in hostilities in or against Iran or any part of its government or military" unless Congress has declared war or specifically authorized engaging in hostilities, or if "such use of the Armed Forces is necessary and appropriate to defend against an imminent armed attack upon the United States."
"We must use this tool of congressional tool of congressional power, or by our silence acquiesce to the growth of the imperial presidency," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said in a speech on the floor ahead of the vote.
The bill directs the president to end hostilities with Iran pursuant to a section of the War Powers Resolution, which was originally adopted to constrain President Richard Nixon's powers in the final throes of the Vietnam War. The 1973 act states that any forces engaged in hostilities outside the U.S. "shall be removed by the President if the Congress so directs by concurrent resolution."
A concurrent resolution does not require Mr. Trump's signature to take effect. But legal questions about Congress' authority to direct the executive branch via concurrent resolution remain unresolved. In 1983, the Supreme Court struck down a similar provision dealing with the so-called "legislative veto." But some legal experts contend the provision in the War Powers Resolution would survive legal scrutiny despite the court's ruling, citing several differences between the laws.
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