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Golden saves Trump's Iran war powers as GOP opposition grows
The defections also underscored slipping Republican support for Trump’s handling of the Iran conflict. In a similar vote last month, only Massie broke with the White House. Thursday’s vote tripled the number of GOP defections and forced Republican leadership to once again rely on Golden to prevent an embarrassing rebuke of Trump from his own party.
Even if the resolution cleared the House, it likely wouldn’t have gotten the 60 votes necessary in the Senate, where similar efforts have repeatedly failed. Regardless, Trump could still veto it even if it passed Congress.
Thursday’s result mirrored what happened last month when the House considered a war powers resolution on the Iran conflict. Golden’s opposition was key then as well.
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Yet Thursday’s vote was also a bigger test of Trump’s war powers because the conflict with Iran has already pushed past the 60-day mark. The 1973 War Powers Resolution limits a president’s unilateral military action to 60 days before having to seek authorization from Congress. The law does allow the president to grant himself a one-time 30-day extension with limitations on offensive operations.
The White House has argued that the conflict, which started on Feb. 28, has yet to reach the threshold because of a ceasefire that is in place with Iran.