House Republican, Democrat move to limit Trump from entering Iran war
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Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie. Photos: Drew Angerer, Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) plan to introduce a measure that would force President Trump to get approval to Congress to enter Israel's conflict with Iran.
Why it matters: The rare bipartisan effort reflects long-running frustration among lawmakers in both parties with the executive branch's growing power to wage war unilaterally.
- Still, Republicans have proven largely reluctant to oppose Trump since he returned to office this year, making the war powers measure a longshot.
Driving the news: "This is not our war. But if it were, Congress must decide such matters according to our Constitution," Massie said Monday in a post on X.
- "I'm introducing a bipartisan War Powers Resolution tomorrow to prohibit our involvement," he said. "I invite all members of Congress to cosponsor this resolution."
- Massie, a libertarian-minded isolationist, has been one of the few House Republicans willing to regularly break with Trump.
- Khanna is co-leading the measure with Massie, the progressive California Democrat's office told Axios.
State of play: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) filed his own war powers resolution in the upper chamber on Monday, which would require congressional debate and a vote to authorize U.S. entry into the Israel-Iran conflict short of defending against imminent Iranian attacks.
- "This resolution will ensure that if we decide to place our nation's men and women in uniform into harm's way, we will have a debate and vote on it in Congress," Kaine said in a statement.
- House members and senators can unilaterally force votes on war powers resolutions without support from leadership.
Zoom out: Massie's announcement came as Trump left the G7 Summit early after warning Iranian civilians to "immediately evacuate Tehran," Axios' Barak Ravid reported.
- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said he was departing "because of what's going on in the Middle East," but did not offer further details.
- White House spokesperson Alex Pfeiffer denied reports that the U.S. had attacked Iran, saying that American forces "are maintaining their defensive posture, and that has not changed."
