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Bloomberg
The Senate rejected legislation that would require President Donald Trump to seek congressional approval for military action in Iran — one of the few measures considered by the Republican-led chamber to curtail his war-making ability.
The 50-40 vote was far short of the 60 needed to adopt the measure. The vote was kept open for about 10 hours to allow the six senators running for president to fly back from the Democratic debates in Miami.
Four Republicans — Rand Paul of Kentucky, Mike Lee of Utah, Susan Collins of Maine and Jerry Moran of Kansas — joined Democrats in voting for the measure. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell allowed the vote even though it was difficult to schedule.
The legislation would have been included as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a massive annual spending bill that is one of Congress’s few must-pass priorities.
It would have restricted the use of funds authorised by the act from being used “to conduct hostilities against the government of Iran, against the armed forces of Iran, or in the territory of Iran,†unless authorised by Congress.
“Dictators and kings declare war unilaterally, not democracies,†Senator Tom Udall, a New Mexico Democrat and the lead sponsor of the amendment, said on the Senate floor.
Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia, one of the Democratic co-sponsors of the measure and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said the House will now have an opportunity to add the amendment to its negotiations over the NDAA, which are slated to begin following the July 4 recess.