US Senate rejects seventh war powers measure as more Republicans break rank

The Senate on Wednesday rejected the seventh attempt by Democrats to force an end to American involvement in the war on Iran, even as the ranks of Republicans opposed to Donald Trump’s strategy grew. The war powers resolution proposed by Jeff Merkley, a Democratic senator of Oregon, failed in a 49-50 vote. All Democrats with the exception of John Fetterman of Pennsylvania supported its advancement. Since the conflict began in February, Democrats have repeatedly offered such resolutions, without success. But for the first time on Wednesday, Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski voted in favor, joining fellow Republicans Rand Paul of Kentucky and Susan Collins of Maine. All other Republicans in attendance voted against it. A spokesperson for Murkowski did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The senator is one of the few in the chamber to occasionally break with Trump during his second term, and last month said that passage of a war powers resolution “would have halted operations that were already underway without any framework for what comes next, and that’s just something I can’t support”. Congress did not formally authorize the US campaign against Iran and Murkowski has said she is working with other lawmakers on an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF), which would be similar to what Congress approved following the 9/11 attacks and ahead of the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. That measure has not been released yet. …