Dems eye use of force vote on Iran
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Sen. Tim Kaine during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on March 3. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images
Senate Democrats are plotting how to bring a formal Authorization for Use of Military Force measure on Iran to the floor, with some eyeing an expected supplemental funding request as leverage to force a vote.
Why it matters: Democrats aren't overly optimistic about succeeding with Wednesday's vote on the War Powers Resolution, led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.). It is scheduled for 4pm.
- However, they're already looking for their next opportunity to restrain President Trump on Iran — and put Republicans on the record on the use of military force in the Middle East.
- "We are exploring right now how we might get an AUMF to the floor," Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) said Tuesday. "But the first challenge is to try to get Sen. Kaine's bill adopted tomorrow."
In the Senate, a new funding bill would require 60 votes, which "might provide the leverage to get the AUMF," Reed said.
- House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole told reporters that the Pentagon is preparing a supplemental funding request for Congress, but it hasn't arrived.
Driving the news: Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) argued during a private Democratic lunch Tuesday for the need for an AUMF vote.
- Kaine told colleagues during Wednesday's closed-door lunch that he agrees on the need for an AUMF vote, the sources said.
- The goal, multiple sources told Axios, is to define the scope and target of the administration's military operations in Iran.
The other side: Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is insistent that Trump can continue the military campaign without explicit congressional approval, for now.
- "The president has the authority that he needs to conduct the activities and the operations that are currently underway there," Thune told reporters.
Zoom out: Republicans were quietly confident they would defeat Kaine's resolution, though at least three GOP senators — Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.) — were publicly undecided before Tuesday's all-senators briefing.
- Democrats think the vote will be "close," but "overwhelmingly [Republicans] are going to vote against it," Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said.
Zoom in: Young, who raised concerns about congressional oversight during a GOP lunch Tuesday, indicated he would ultimately vote against the resolution.
- Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who is facing a difficult reelection campaign in a Democratic-leaning state, has not indicated how she will vote.
The bottom line: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has signaled he's open to forcing an AUMF vote.
- But Democrats believe an AUMF must technically be introduced by a Republican senator, and they are discussing ways to force the GOP's hand.
- Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) told Axios on Tuesday that it is the GOP's "obligation" to offer an AUMF and that it is the Democrats' job to "make things really difficult here until they do."
