Senate GOP defeats resolution directing Trump to end Iran war as more Republicans sour on conflict

The Senate on Thursday defeated a House-passed resolution directing President Trump to withdraw U.S. troops from the conflict with Iran, despite growing dissatisfaction among GOP senators over President Trump’s handling of the war.

Four Republicans joined nearly the entire Senate Democratic caucus for the war powers resolution, which the House passed in July . But the latest measure, a concurrent resolution, failed in a 49-50 vote.

Centrist Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), an ardent supporter of Israel , was the only Democrat to vote against it.

It passed the House in a 214-208 vote two months ago, when four Republican lawmakers voted for it.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) on Thursday voted for the war powers resolution for the first time, joining GOP Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Rand Paul (Ky.), who have voted for previous resolutions directing Trump to end the war.

Tillis said the conflict has dragged on for too long without congressional authorization and argued it has become a serious political liability for GOP candidates because of its impact on gas, diesel and fertilizer prices.

“We’re reaching a point to where we just need answers. We got to know what success looks like,” Tillis told The Hill.

He added there has been a “consistently downward-trending negative reaction” from the public since the first strikes against Iran in February.

“We don’t know how long it’s going to go,” he continued. “So, we’re afraid it could be a forever war. It’s a war that’s obviously hurting people economically. Why are we doing this? What is the goal?”

Polls show support for the war dropping among Republicans. A CNN poll conducted by SSRS of 1,206 U.S. adults nationwide this month found that support among self-identified Republicans has dropped by more than 10 percentage points since March.

But Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who appeared undecided earlier in the day, cast a key vote against the resolution, sending it to defeat.

He and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) were holed up in the historic Mansfield Room just off the Senate floor right until Cassidy emerged to vote no.

Cassidy was also spotted deep in discussion with Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) before the pivotal vote.

The Louisiana Republican, who lost his primary for reelection in May, rejected the notion that he was being “worked over” by Thune to vote against the measure, telling reporters any speculation that his leaders were pressuring him was “nonsense.”

Democratic Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (Md.) missed the vote.

Cassidy said last week the Trump administration had made “very little” to “no” effort to consult with members of Congress about the war.

He voted with Collins, Murkowski and Paul in June to pass a House-approved resolution directing Trump to end the war.

That led to a heated meeting between the president and Senate Republicans in the Capitol on June 24, when Trump and Cassidy got into a shouting match. The argument got so intense that a Senate colleague had to pull Cassidy back down into his seat.

Cassidy later changed his position and voted against another Iran war powers resolution that Senate Republican leaders hastily brought to the floor after the meeting with Trump.

He explained that he changed his vote because Vice President Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff gave him the information he needed in a special briefing on the war.

Paul also changed his vote to “present” at the time after Trump vented his extreme displeasure earlier in the day over the House-approved resolution passing.

The Congressional Budget Office released an estimate last week that the conflict has cost the Pentagon $38 billion as of Aug. 1.

But the biggest problem posed by the war for many Republicans has been the impact on gas and diesel prices , which have soared since Trump first ordered strikes.

The national average gas price before the war was less than $3 per gallon and has now risen to $4.50 per gallon. The price of diesel stood around $3.52 per gallon in January and this week hit a record high for late September of $6.52.

The House passed another war powers resolution on Sept. 15 in a 220-204 vote after seven House Republicans joined Democrats in voting for the measure.