Four Democrats voted with Republicans to effectively greenlight President Donald Trump’s military action in Iran, breaking with the party’s House leadership.
The House voted down the War Powers Act (WPA) — introduced by Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie and Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna — 212 to 219 just one day after the upper chamber nearly voted along party lines to approve the president’s action in the Middle East. Democratic Reps. Henry Cuellar of Texas, Greg Landsman of Ohio, Jared Golden of Maine and Juan Vargas of California broke from the party to support the president.
Massie and Republican Ohio Rep. Warren Davidson were the only two Republicans to side with Democrats to support the measure.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called “dangerous” as it would require the administration to extract troops from the region immediately. Some members found the rapid removal could endanger troops while Iran actively targets American troops, assets, embassies, and allies across the region.
A half a dozen members, including Golden and Landsman, introduced an alternative War Powers Act to counteract the Massie-Khanna resolution. The alternative measure would give the administration 30 days to cease military action in Iran and mandates the administration regularly briefs members of Congress and relevant committees on military operations and objectives.
Davidson was hesitant about the timeline of the Iran strikes, as the administration has provided multiple different possibilities ranging from three weeks to months. Reports indicate officials in U.S. Central Command are preparing for the campaign in Iran to potentially last until September.
Talks of supplemental defense funding are spreading through Congress as some Senators on theArmed Services Committee refuse to rule out allocating additional funds to replenish the defenses that keep service members safe. Johnson said Congress would pass additional funding to support the administration “when it’s appropriate.”
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