US House Republicans cancel Iran war powers vote

WASHINGTON — Republican leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives unexpectedly canceled a Thursday vote on a resolution that would require President Donald Trump to obtain Congress' approval before continuing the war in Iran, two days after a similar measure moved forward in the U.S. Senate.

The vote had been scheduled for late Thursday afternoon, just before lawmakers left Washington for the Memorial Day recess.

Earlier this year, the House blocked three war powers resolutions in close votes, with near-unanimous support from Republicans, highlighting strong backing for the Iran war and for President Trump within his party.

However, the margins have become increasingly narrow. The last resolution failed in a tie vote, as weeks have passed since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28. Thursday’s measure appeared likely to pass, given expected defections by some Republicans and absences of others.

“We had the votes without question, and they knew it,” Representative Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told reporters after the vote was canceled.

Meeks said House Republican leaders have postponed the vote until early June, following the Memorial Day recess.

Democrats, along with a few Republicans, have urged Trump to seek Congress’ authorization for military action, noting that the U.S. Constitution gives Congress—not the president—the power to declare war. They expressed concern that Trump may have involved the U.S. in a long conflict without presenting a clear strategy.

Most Republicans and the White House maintain that Trump’s actions are legal and within his rights as commander-in-chief to protect the United States through limited military operations against imminent threats.

Republicans hold narrow majorities in both the House and Senate.

On Tuesday, the Senate advanced a similar war powers resolution in a rare rebuke of Trump. The procedural vote to move the measure forward was 50-47, with four Republicans joining nearly all Senate Democrats in support. Three Republicans did not vote.

-Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Sonali Paul/Reuters