Congress is trying to pump the brakes on the Iran conflict, and for once, some Republicans are helping.
The Senate voted to advance a resolution directing President Trump to end US military hostilities in Iran, joining a similar move in the House that passed on June 3 with a 215-208 vote. Four Republican representatives crossed the aisle to support the House measure, a detail that matters because it makes this harder to dismiss as pure partisan theater.
The conflict with Iran has been running for roughly three months, having started in March 2026. Crucially, it has done so without explicit congressional authorization, which is exactly the kind of thing the War Powers Resolution of 1973 was designed to prevent.
What happened and why it matters
The Senate cleared a procedural hurdle on May 19, with a 50-47 vote advancing a related resolution. That vote was notable on its own, representing the first time a similar measure had gotten this far after earlier attempts stalled.
