The Senate rejected Trump’s latest push to tighten sanctions on Iran as the war is unclear.
Washington – The Senate on Tuesday rejected the latest Democratic-led effort to extradite President Trump to Iran as the US and Tehran send conflicting messages on how to end the war.
The party’s close vote was 47 to 53, short of the majority needed to advance. All Republicans except Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted against it, while all Democrats except Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania supported it.
Earlier this month, Democrats introduced several military power resolutions to block Mr. Trump to continue the military attack on Iran without congressional approval. They vowed to continue to force votes on the issue as a way to get public testimony from the Trump administration about the conflict.
Tuesday’s vote on a resolution introduced by Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut is this the third time since the conflict began on February 28 that Senate Republicans have blocked efforts to challenge Mr Trump’s authority to fight Iran. Another vote last year after the strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities also failed.
“This is an extraordinary time,” Murphy said during a debate before the vote. “I don’t think we’ve had a moment like this, when the United States is arguably at war with a foreign power, when American soldiers are dying as we speak and it’s being publicly covered up by Congress.”
Murphy said there has never been a public hearing on the issue because the administration “can’t defend and explain this war.” He called the results of the war “surprising in their magnitude.”
“If they are not willing to come to the Congress, they will defend this war, it speaks of the crime of preparation and strategy,” he said.
Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, who led the war effort, said “any proposal of this nature that would put the lives of our soldiers at risk should be scrutinized before we do anything in this House.”
The Trump administration and Republicans have argued that the president does not need congressional approval because the Constitution and the Military Powers Act of 1973 give him the authority to order military action in self-defense. Mr. Trump has said Iran poses an “imminent” threat to the US, although critics have dismissed that.
Mr. Trump has been saying for weeks that the war will end soon, but the off-ramp is still unclear. Pentagon officials did detailed arrangements by sending US ground forces to Iran as the president weighs next steps.
On Monday, Mr. Trump announced that the military is attacking the energy infrastructure of Iran, who previously threatened to block the Strait of Hormuz, will be postponed five days. Mr. Trump also said that talks with Iran are ongoing, although Iran denies that there are any direct talks. Iranian Foreign Ministry official confirmed to CBS News that the US sent Iran a message through intermediaries.
Democrats in the lower house could move on to another war power resolution soon, but House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries did not commit to a timeline on Tuesday.
Jeffries said there are “ongoing discussions” about moving forward “sooner rather than later” but they want to put something down that works.
“If we present something on the ground, it is our determination to win,” he said.
