GOP Cancels War Powers Vote

House Republican leaders scrapped a planned vote Thursday on a measure that would have ordered President Trump to withdraw US forces from Iran or seek congressional authorization to continue the conflict, after concluding they did not have the support to block it. The decision underscored divisions within the GOP over the war and dealt another setback to Speaker Mike Johnson, who has worked to align the House with the president's position but faces a slim and increasingly difficult-to-manage majority, the New York Times reports.

GOP leaders delayed the vote until after the weeklong Memorial Day recess when it became clear that the measure Democrats had forced to the floor probably would pass, per the Wall Street Journal. "You don't have the votes!" Democrats shouted. Although Trump could veto the measure if it passes, approval still would have represented a rebuke of the president and the offensive he launched without consulting Congress. Polls show most Americans are against the war. Republicans "were going to lose the vote. They know that the war is unpopular," said Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna. Johnson did not take questions. It was the fourth Democratic attempt since late February to curb Trump's unilateral war-making power in Iran. Rep. Gregory Meeks, who sponsored the bill, said Democrats had the votes "locked in" this time, per the AP.