House Democrats scored a symbolic victory Thursday after four Republicans joined them in approving a war powers resolution aimed at limiting President Donald Trump’s military campaign against Iran without congressional approval.
The House passed the measure 214-208 after Reps. Jason Crow, D-Colo., and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., forced a vote using a privileged resolution, allowing the legislation to reach the floor despite opposition from House Republican leadership.
The Republicans who crossed party lines were Reps. Warren Davidson of Ohio, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Tom Barrett of Michigan and Thomas Massie of Kentucky.
Massie and Davidson have long been outspoken critics of foreign military intervention, while Fitzpatrick and Barrett are moderates facing competitive re-election races. The same four Republicans also backed a similar war powers resolution that passed the House in June.
“My position hasn’t changed,” Barrett, an Army veteran and freshman lawmaker, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Only Congress has the authority to authorize military action in Iran.”
“I remain ready to work with anyone to eliminate hostile threats to our nation without getting us into another endless war,” he added.
The resolution is largely symbolic and would not be sent to Trump’s desk even if the Senate also approved it.
Still, the vote highlighted ongoing divisions among Republicans over the administration’s handling of the conflict. Several GOP lawmakers have argued Congress has not received enough information about U.S. military operations in Iran.
The split comes as a Fox News poll released Wednesday found that just 34% of voters approve of Trump’s handling of Iran.
Trump and his allies have insisted they will continue pressing forward to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The vote also comes as Trump reportedly weighs whether to further escalate the conflict after Iranian forces killed several U.S. service members in Jordan and Iraq over the weekend.
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Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command announced Wednesday that American forces completed their 12th consecutive night of strikes targeting Iran’s maritime capabilities, air defense systems and other military infrastructure.
“U.S. forces remain vigilant,” CENTCOM wrote in a social media post Thursday.
Democrats forced the vote under the War Powers Act by using a privileged resolution, allowing rank-and-file lawmakers to bypass House GOP leadership.
Crow, an Army veteran, blasted the administration’s handling of the conflict.
“18 American servicemembers have been killed since this war began. Hundreds more have been injured. Billions of taxpayer dollars have been spent. The President’s war with Iran has been an unmitigated disaster.”
“The costs are rising every day, yet the President is choosing to double down on his failures,” he continued.
The vote marked another instance this year in which a handful of Republicans broke with Trump despite the GOP’s razor-thin House majority.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., celebrated the outcome following the vote.
“Donald Trump and Republicans have failed the American people, which is why they clearly are on the run and are on the verge of losing control of the House of Representatives,” he said during a news conference.
Trump criticized the same four Republican lawmakers after they supported a similar war powers resolution in June, calling them “unpatriotic.”
