The Senate narrowly rejected a final war powers resolution on Iran hostilities before the midterms, as only four Republicans broke ranks in a 49-50 vote.
On Thursday, the Senate defeated a concurrent resolution that directed President Trump to remove U.S. Armed Forces from hostilities against Iran. The measure failed 49 to 50, the Daily Caller reported, after just four Republicans joined most Democrats in support.
Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted yes. Democratic Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks did not vote. The defeat closes the latest congressional push to constrain the president on Iran before voters head to the polls.
The resolution told the president to pull U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran or any part of its government or military unless Congress first authorized the action through a declaration of war or a specific use-of-force statute. Because it was a concurrent resolution, it carried no force of law. The president was not obligated to comply.
Collins, Paul, Tillis, and Murkowski supplied the only Republican votes for passage. Collins faces a tight re-election contest in Maine against Democratic nominee Troy Jackson. Paul, Tillis, and Murkowski had also backed a separate concurrent resolution that passed the Senate in June.
Two Republicans who have criticized the Iran conflict still voted no. Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy and Ohio Sen. Jon Husted opposed the resolution Thursday even after earlier public criticism of the war. Cassidy had voted for the June measure; Husted has likewise voiced concerns about the fighting.
Just the News reported that Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania also voted against the resolution, breaking with most of his party. The outlet published the measure’s operative language directing removal of U.S. forces from hostilities against Iran absent explicit congressional authorization.
"Congress hereby directs the President to remove the use of United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran or any part of its government or military, including potential ground forces in a combat role or used for occupation, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force against Iran," the resolution reads.
The Senate action followed a House vote on Sept. 16. That day, seven House Republicans joined Democrats to pass a similar resolution. The Republican yes votes came from Reps. Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Zach Nunn of Iowa, and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa.
The pattern is familiar. In June, the Senate passed a separate concurrent resolution on the same subject. Trump confronted Senate Republicans over that earlier passage during a lunch on Capitol Hill. Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy later told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the president was “mad as a murder hornet.”
Thursday’s 49-50 result shows the latest version could not clear the upper chamber once the full Republican conference held together minus the four defectors. Alsobrooks’s absence left Democrats short of the margin they needed even with Republican help.
More Republicans have called for the war to end as competitive races intensify. House members who previously supported the conflict have shifted their public posture. Iowa Rep. Ashley Hinson, Wisconsin Rep. Tom Tiffany, and former Michigan Rep. Mike Rogers are among those now urging an end to the fighting despite earlier backing.
Hinson tied the issue directly to household costs in a Sept. 21 post and public remarks. She argued that Iowans should not absorb higher prices at the pump and checkout line because of the Iran war, and she listed concrete energy steps she wants pursued.
Hinson said:
"Iowans are being squeezed and shouldn’t have to foot the bill at the pump or the checkout line for the war in Iran. We need to use every option at our disposal to provide some relief from high prices. That includes suspending the gas tax, pausing diesel exports, unleashing E-15 everywhere we can, reinstating the $1/gallon biodiesel tax credit, and creating a diesel relief program to help our farmers and truckers being crushed by the high costs."
Republicans have also ramped up spending and campaigning to protect vulnerable candidates, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in his Senate bid against Democratic state Rep. James Talarico. Competitive terrain in Texas, Ohio, Iowa, and Kansas has kept energy costs and foreign policy on the trail.
A CNN/SSRS poll found only 26 percent of Americans approved of Trump’s handling of the Iran war. That figure included 60 percent of Republicans. Among Republican or Republican-leaning voters younger than 45, 53 percent disapproved of his handling of the conflict.
Those numbers help explain why some Republicans facing tough electorates have publicly pressed for an off-ramp even while the Senate majority refused to pass the concurrent resolution. The poll does not erase the institutional point: a concurrent resolution is not a statute, and it does not bind the commander in chief.
Lawmakers who wanted a binding limit had a different tool available. They could have pursued a joint resolution or a stand-alone authorization bill with the force of law. They did not. They advanced a symbolic measure timed to the pre-election window, then watched it fail when most Republicans declined to join.
Nothing in Thursday’s tally orders troops home. The resolution’s text sought to direct removal of U.S. Armed Forces from hostilities with Iran, including potential ground forces in a combat or occupation role, absent a declaration of war or specific authorization. The Senate said no.
Collins still has to finish a close race in Maine. Tillis, Paul, and Murkowski recorded another vote with Democrats on a war-powers vehicle. Cassidy and Husted refused to do so this time. Fetterman sided against the bulk of his caucus. Alsobrooks missed the roll call entirely.
The House’s Sept. 16 passage and the Senate’s June vote already put Congress on record. The final pre-midterm attempt in the Senate did not advance that record any further. It stalled at 49-50.
Campaign season rewards politicians who sound impatient with foreign conflicts and grocery bills. Governing still requires distinguishing a press release from a statute, and a concurrent resolution from the authorities the Constitution actually assigns.
