The Senate rejected a war powers resolution late Wednesday after President Donald Trump pressured Republicans to reverse their earlier support, delivering him a victory just one day after the chamber approved the same measure 50-48.
The late-night vote failed 47-50-1, with Senate Republicans who had backed the resolution Tuesday shifting their positions following Trump’s scathing criticism at a Capitol lunch earlier Wednesday. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who had voted with Democrats on Tuesday, cast a vote against the measure after receiving a White House briefing from Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted present “to give the President more space and leverage to negotiate a lasting peace,” he said on X.
Trump had harangued GOP senators face-to-face for allowing the initial war powers vote, which directed him to remove U.S. armed forces from hostilities with Iran unless Congress formally authorized military action. He exchanged particularly harsh words with Cassidy during the closed-door GOP lunch, calling him a “lunatic” and repeatedly telling him to sit down, according to a person familiar with the private meeting.
“I stood and said, ‘You have not told the American people what’s going on,'” Cassidy told reporters after the lunch. “This was supposed to last four weeks, it’s lasted four months. Our original objectives have not been achieved.” He said the two men “went back and forth” and he “matched his tone and volume” before eventually de-escalating.
The Senate war powers resolution is a largely symbolic measure that does not require Trump’s signature but serves as a congressional statement on military authority. The House had passed a similar resolution earlier this month. Tuesday’s Senate vote marked the first time the chamber approved a war powers resolution on the Iran war, making it a rare rebuke of Trump’s military policy.
The swift reversal underscores escalating tensions between Trump and Senate Republicans, who have grown increasingly frustrated with the president’s demands on unrelated legislative matters. Trump had cancelled a scheduled signing ceremony for a bipartisan housing bill Wednesday morning, demanding that Senate Republicans pass his SAVE America Act—a proof-of-citizenship voting bill—before he would sign the affordable housing legislation that passed both chambers overwhelmingly.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and a small group of GOP colleagues called Trump after the late-night vote to inform him of the outcome. Thune said the president was “pleased with the outcome.” Trump later thanked Thune on social media and noted that Cassidy and Paul had switched their votes. “This vote puts Iran on notice!” he wrote.
Sources
- AP News — Senate Republicans’ late-night vote, Trump’s Capitol lunch with GOP senators, Cassidy’s vote switch, and Trump’s response
- The Washington Post — Senate rejection of war powers resolution on June 25, Trump’s criticism undermining negotiations claim
- Reuters — Initial Senate passage of war powers resolution on June 23 with 50-48 vote
- The Guardian — Four Republicans voting for the resolution (Collins, Murkowski, Cassidy, Paul)
