US House rejects war powers resolution that would prevent further action against Iran

The US House of Representatives on Thursday narrowly rejected a war powers resolution that would have prevented further military action against Iran, as Democrats united against continued US involvement in the conflict amid peace talks that have yet to make a breakthrough.

The resolution introduced by Greg Meeks, the top Democrat on the House foreign affairs committee, failed by a vote of 213-214, with one Republican member voting present. It required at least two more votes to pass, as tied votes fail in the House.

In a sign that Democrats had solidified in opposition to the war, three congressmen who had voted against a previous resolution in March – Henry Cuellar of Texas, Greg Landsman of Ohio and Juan Vargas of California – voted in favor of this attempt. Jared Golden of Maine was the sole Democrat to vote in opposition, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky the only Republican to vote for passage. Ohio’s Warren Davidson voted present, after voting in favor last month.

Two Democrats who shifted their positions said they were dissatisfied with Trump’s handling of the conflict and were concerned that it could turn into a costly open-ended engagement.

“It’s time to be done,” Landsman said in a statement, last month that announced he would back Meeks’s resolution when it came to the floor.

Arguing that the Trump administration had degraded Iran’s ability to manufacture missiles and drones and disrupted their ability to obtain a nuclear weapon, he said: “I trust our military planners and generals to execute on these goals. They have done so, and now it is time for the administration to end the operation before we become entangled in a conflict with no strategic logic.”

Cuellar announced his support for the resolution after Trump – just before announcing a temporary ceasefire in the conflict that continues to hold – warned that a “whole civilization will die” if Iran did not agree to his demands.

“When the United States echoes the rhetoric of its adversaries, we risk weakening the values that have long defined our leadership. America has always stood for something higher, especially restraint and moral clarity, and that’s what the world expects from us,” Cuellar said, adding that information he received about US strategy in the conflict has “not been sufficient”.

In a statement, Golden, who is retiring after his current term, noted there are now intense negotiations between the US and Iran during the two-week ceasefire, and claimed “a resolution like this would weaken our hand”.

Talks held in Pakistan over the weekend between JD Vance and Iranian officials failed to reach an agreement to extend the ceasefire beyond its 22 April expiry, with the US vice-president saying Tehran refused to give up its nuclear program. However, indirect negotiations continued this week, with Pakistan’s army chief traveling to Iran to continue mediation efforts.