As the Trump administration surrounds Iran with warships at a level not seen since the Iraq invasion, many in Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, sought to avoid a vote on a war powers resolution — the type of bill constitutionally required for the president to legally wage war. According to strategists, the opposition to the vote is a symptom of a body of lawmakers who support the war, but who don’t want to be on the record, for fear of accountability.
As President Donald Trump moved U.S. forces into position around Iran, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., introduced the resolution, which, if passed, would empower the president to wage war against Iran. The Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to start wars, though it has not voted for a war since 1942.
