The U.S. Senate rejected a war powers resolution on Thursday, failing 49-50 to direct President Donald Trump to withdraw American forces from hostilities with Iran. The vote marks the second failed attempt in two weeks as mounting casualties, dwindling munitions, and a public opinion poll show growing friction over the fifth-month conflict.
Senate Defeat Highlights Deepening Divisions Over Iran Conflict
The U.S. Senate rejected a largely symbolic effort to halt the military campaign in Iran on Thursday, dealing the latest setback to lawmakers attempting to curtail the White House’s military authority. The legislation fell short in a 49-50 vote, according to The Guardian, marking the second time in two weeks that the chamber has taken up a war powers resolution aimed at forcing an end to hostilities.
The conflict has stretched past five months, far overshooting the four to five-week timeline predicted when the military campaign launched on February 28 alongside Israel, an operation that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei. Strains have multiplied across political lines as the Pentagon reports that at least 18 U.S. service members have died and more than 450 have been wounded. Four of those deaths occurred during a mid-July attack at the Muwaffaq Salti air base in Jordan.
Public patience is also wearing thin. A poll released Thursday by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research indicated that roughly two-thirds of U.S. adults believe the war has not been worthwhile, compared to 33% who support it. That skepticism spans the political spectrum, registering among the vast majority of Democrats and independents as well as approximately 37% of Republicans.
Crossing Party Lines and Republican Defections
Thursday’s vote saw rare bipartisan friction, though not enough to clear the threshold for passage. Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman broke from his party to vote with Republicans against the measure. Conversely, Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Rand Paul of Kentucky crossed the aisle to support the resolution directing the removal of U.S. forces absent explicit congressional authorization.
Mitch McConnell missed the vote as he continues recovering from a fall in June without medical clearance to return. Louisiana Republican Senator Bill Cassidy initially joined Democrats in a previous procedural move but ultimately reversed course after receiving a classified briefing. Cassidy explained that his initial vote served as leverage to get some information
.
“It is a gradation, what we’re doing here is a gradation, a murkiness, a vagueness, but we’re trying to see our way through it. And I’m trying to see my way through it.”
Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., via Fox News
Despite shifting his vote, Cassidy drew a firm boundary concerning ground operations, asserting that any deployment of ground troops requires a formal declaration of war from Congress.
Dwindling Munitions and Rising Financial Costs
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have raised alarms over shrinking military stockpiles. A report published Monday by the Center for Strategic and International Studies revealed that Patriot and THAAD interceptor inventories dropped from prewar levels of 2,330 and 452 missiles down to 759 and 234 missiles, respectively, as renewed fighting tested regional defenses.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut criticized the administration’s strategic planning during congressional debates.
“Trump launched this war impulsively, without a clear set of achievable objectives, and planning for how to conduct it. The basic failure to plan the amount of munitions that would be necessary is a fatal failing that is directly the responsibility of the commander in chief.”
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., via Fox News
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has informed Congress that it needs roughly $80bn more to sustain operations, adding to more than $37bn already spent. New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand pushed for the resolution ahead of the vote, arguing that the conflict directly impacts household budgets by driving up monthly bills for working families.
Market Volatility and Expanded Financial Sanctions
The military escalation has also reverberated through global markets. Following the sinking of an Iranian warship and the collapse of a June ceasefire brokered between Washington and Tehran, economic indicators shifted rapidly. Bitcoin fell more than 3% below $62,000 in early July as investors reacted to remarks that the ceasefire was no longer operational.
Alongside traditional military maneuvers, the Treasury Department has targeted financial networks tied to the conflict. U.S. authorities have frozen at least $344 million in Iranian-linked cryptocurrency assets, with some estimates placing the total volume of involved assets as high as $7.7 billion. The enforcement push has placed cryptocurrency exchanges facilitating those transactions under strict regulatory scrutiny as the Senate adjourns for a two-week recess without an established endpoint for the conflict.
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