US Senate rejects latest bid to curb Trump’s Iran war powers authority

The US Senate has narrowly voted down a resolution concerning war powers related to Iran, as President Donald Trump advances a framework agreement with Tehran aimed at ending months of conflict.

Senators rejected a motion to bring the resolution out of committee for a floor vote by 47 votes to 48, Caliber.Az reports, citing CBS News.

Four Republicans — Senators Susan Collins (Maine), Bill Cassidy (Louisiana), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Rand Paul (Kentucky) — joined nearly all Democrats in voting in favor of advancing the measure. Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to vote against it.

The vote takes place amid growing demands from lawmakers for greater transparency over the terms of a US-Iran agreement that has not been made public. In 2015, Congress enacted the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, mandating that any deal concerning Iran’s nuclear program be submitted for congressional review before sanctions can be lifted.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, told reporters on Tuesday, June 16, that he had requested access to the agreement’s text as well as a briefing from the administration.

Earlier this month, the House approved a separate measure aimed at compelling Trump to end the war in Iran without congressional authorization, marking the first successful effort in the lower chamber to constrain the president amid declining Republican support for the conflict, while the Senate has yet to consider the proposal.

The administration maintains that the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which requires the president to withdraw forces from hostilities lacking congressional approval, is unconstitutional, and also argues that the statutory 60-day limit for ending the use of force without congressional consent was suspended by an early April ceasefire, despite continued exchanges of attacks by both sides.

By Jeyhun Aghazada