In a move backed by Republican lawmakers, the US Senate approved a measure directing President Donald Trump to either stop military operations against Iran or seek authorisation from Congress before proceeding further.
However, the resolution remains largely symbolic because, even if it clears both chambers of Congress, it will not be forwarded to President Donald Trump for approval and does not have the force of law.
A small group of Republican senators joined Democrats to support the measure in Tuesday’s 50–48 vote. The proposal had already been approved by the US House of Representatives earlier this month.
The vote came amid growing scepticism among Republicans in Congress over the peace agreement President Donald Trump reached with Iran, as the increasingly unpopular conflict nears its fifth month.
On Tuesday night, President Donald Trump criticised the resolution, describing it as “poorly timed and meaningless.”
“So, I have Iran on the ‘ropes,’ ready to go down for the fall… and the U.S. Senate decides to have a poorly timed and meaningless War Powers Act Vote,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“These Senators have just made my job more difficult, but I will get it done, one way or the other, because I always get it done!”
The decision represents the first instance since the War Powers Resolution became law in 1973 that both the Senate and House of Representatives have backed a concurrent resolution calling on a sitting president to stop ongoing military action.
Unlike bills that are sent to the president for approval and can become law, a concurrent resolution serves mainly to communicate the position or intention of Congress. In 2019, President Donald Trump vetoed a separate joint resolution that sought to withdraw US armed forces from involvement in the conflict in Yemen.
Laura Blumenfeld described the measure as “more of a slap on the wrist than a handcuff,” saying it has limited impact because it does not carry legal force.
However, she told the BBC that she believes the resolution reflects public opinion in the United States and serves as an indication of how many Americans feel about the conflict.
The passage of the concurrent resolution is seen as significant because it increases political pressure on the White House to pursue an end to the war with Iran, which has become increasingly unpopular among Americans following a rise in petrol prices.
The measure had already been approved earlier this month by the US House of Representatives, where four Republican lawmakers joined Democrats to back it in a 215–208 vote.
However, a White House official told the BBC that since a ceasefire was agreed on 7 April, there are currently no active hostilities requiring the withdrawal of American forces.
The White House official also argued that the measure succeeded only because two Republican senators — Mitch McConnell and Dave McCormick — were absent during the vote.
Joining Democrats in backing the resolution were four Republican senators: Rand Paul, Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins and Bill Cassidy.
John Fetterman was the only Democratic senator who voted against the resolution.
The vote marked the latest indication of divisions within President Donald Trump’s Republican Party ahead of the November midterm elections, which will determine whether Republicans can maintain their narrow majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
The vote held on Tuesday represented the 10th attempt by Senate Democrats to invoke war powers procedures since the outbreak of the conflict.
The development came on the same day the Pentagon requested about $80 billion from Congress, with the majority of the funding expected to support military operations linked to the war with Iran.
Under federal law, military action cannot continue beyond 60 days without approval from Congress. US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on 28 February, although the Trump administration has maintained that the ceasefire reached in April effectively restarted that timeline.
The White House may also extend the timeline by an additional 30 days if it argues that doing so is necessary for national security reasons.
At present, the US and Iran have agreed to maintain a ceasefire and are pursuing efforts to formally end the conflict under a memorandum of understanding signed by the leaders of both countries last week.
Under the terms of the memorandum, Washington and Tehran have been given a 60-day window to negotiate a wider agreement aimed at bringing Iran’s nuclear programme to an end.
