According to Reuters and AP reports, on June 23 local time, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution demanding that U.S. President Trump cease military actions against Iran. This is the first time in over 37 years since the enactment of the War Powers Act in 1973 that both the House of Representatives and the Senate have jointly passed such a resolution. However, the resolution lacks legal binding force and has only symbolic significance.
On that day, the U.S. Senate passed this war powers resolution by a vote of 50 to 48. The House of Representatives had already passed the bill earlier this month. Four Republican senators and all the Democratic senators except one voted in favor of the resolution, while two Republican senators were absent and did not vote.
The report indicates that this is the latest condemnation from the increasingly uneasy Congress against Trump. Polls show that the war against Iran, which began on February 28th, is deeply unpopular. Even among some members of Trump’s Republican party, concerns about this situation are growing.
"After the decision was passed, Senator Chuck Schumer, leader of the Democratic caucus in the Senate, said: 'The Senate overwhelmingly sided with Trump and his war on the American people, rather than standing with them time after time.'”
Schumer said that the American people have paid a price for Trump’s “historical mistake” regarding the Iran issue, and “this will be recorded as one of the worst diplomatic policies in American history.”
On June 23 local time, Chuck Schumer delivered a speech at the Capitol Building. Associated Press
Meanwhile, the White House in the United States is expected to apply for hundreds of billions of dollars in funding from Congress to cover the costs of this war.
The Republican Party currently holds a narrow majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. However, with only a few months left until the midterm elections in November, several Republican lawmakers have gone over to oppose Trump on various issues. The outcome of these midterm elections will determine whether the Republican Party can continue to control Congress.
Recently, several Republican legislators have opposed the $1.8 billion “Anti-Political Weaponization Fund” proposed by Trump. This fund is intended to compensate political allies of Trump who have faced targeting by federal agencies. Additionally, a bill worth $7 billion, which aims to strengthen immigration enforcement measures, has also been delayed due to their obstruction efforts.
A poll conducted jointly by Reuters and Ipsos on the 23rd showed that only a quarter of Americans believe that the war against Iran is worth the cost. Most people are worried that the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran may not last long.
The Trump administration is negotiating a peace agreement with Iran. The passage of this resolution by both houses of Congress could pressure Trump to avoid the situation where negotiations fail and the United States relives military conflicts. Trump has previously stated that if negotiations yield no results, he may consider using force again.
According to the War Powers Act enacted in 1973, this joint resolution passed by both the House and the Senate does not need to be sent to the White House for Trump to sign. When Congress introduced this act, it was intended to use such resolutions as a mechanism to end military operations.
However, legal experts say that the legal characterization of such laws remains unresolved. To date, no resolution related to war powers has been passed by both the House and Senate. In 1983, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that any legislation introduced by Congress must go through the entire legislative process before it can take effect, either after being signed by the President or through the use of the veto power.
The Trump administration has always argued that the War Powers Act itself is unconstitutional and therefore has no binding force.
A White House official stated on the 23rd that the vote by the Senate is not significant in terms of substance, as the resolution does not require the President's signature and therefore has no legal effect. The resolution could pass simply because two Republican senators were absent from the voting.
The official also added that the resolution requires Trump to withdraw U.S. troops from conflict zones. However, the White House believes that military operations would have already ceased after the ceasefire agreement took effect on April 7.
Law experts suggest that whether the "War Powers Law" complies with the Constitution will likely be decided by the courts.
Bruce Ginsburg, Senior Fellow of the Brookings Institution and Editor-in-Chief of "Legal Warfare" for legal media, said: "Administrative departments are likely to ignore this resolution on the grounds of violating the constitution. Currently, it is unclear who has the qualification to file a lawsuit to compel the implementation of the resolution."
The sponsor of this resolution in the House of Representatives, New York State Democrat Representative Micks, stated that he believes the resolution is binding and will exhaust all legal avenues to ensure compliance by the White House.
Democratic lawmakers also pointed out that the U.S. Constitution grants the power to declare war to Congress, not the President. Virginia Democratic Senator Kaine said in a speech calling for colleagues to support the resolution: “Congress must take on this responsibility.”
Although the resolution requires the president to end U.S. military operations in Iran without declaring war or obtaining congressional authorization, since the resolution is a joint resolution of Congress and does not have legal binding force, nor does it require the president's signature, it primarily serves a symbolic purpose.
The report indicates that although this vote is likely to be symbolic only, it represents a political setback for Trump. Not long ago, he could have received nearly unanimous support from Republican lawmakers in Congress.
When this resolution was first passed in the House of Representatives, only a few Republican lawmakers switched sides to support it. The final vote in the House was 215 in favor and 208 against, with four Republican representatives and all Democratic representatives voting in favor.
The four Republican senators who voted in favor were: Susan Collins from Maine, Rand Paul from Kentucky, Bill Cassidy from Louisiana, and Lisa Murkovski from Alaska. Senator John Fetterman from Pennsylvania voted against the proposal.
Kentucky Republican leader Mitch McConnell and Pennsylvania Republican David McCormick were absent from this vote.
Democratic lawmakers have stated that they will continue to promote multiple votes on bills related to war powers, in order to force Republican lawmakers to publicly declare their stance on this war against Iraq.
In addition, according to a law passed in 2015, Congress has the authority to review and vote on any peace agreements between the United States and Iran related to the Iranian nuclear program. At that time, the Obama administration was negotiating nuclear agreements with multiple countries to discuss with Iran.
In the South Dakota Senate Republican caucus leadership, John Huneen, on the 23rd of this month, stated that he expects the Congress will conduct an examination and vote on a final peace agreement between the U.S. and Iraq.
