50 votes in favor, 48 opposed! Trump's key powers weakened, fatal flaws in U.S. military exposed!
On the afternoon of June 23 local time, the U.S. Senate passed a war powers resolution by a vote of 50 in favor and 48 opposed. The resolution demands that Trump end military operations against Iran and withdraw U.S. troops from hostile actions.
The House of Representatives had previously passed the bill in early June. This marks the first time since the 1973 War Powers Act was enacted that both chambers of Congress have unanimously approved such a resolution. The voting largely followed party lines: four Republican lawmakers defected to join Democrats in supporting the measure, one Democrat voted against their party, and two Republicans were absent.
On February 28 this year, the United States launched a military strike against Iran. The conflict has now lasted nearly four months. Prior to this, Democrats had repeatedly introduced bills in the Senate to limit presidential war powers—five previous attempts all failed. However, as the war dragged on, anti-war sentiment at home continued to rise.
Recent polling shows Trump’s approval rating has dropped to just 34%. The fact that four Republican lawmakers defected indicates even members within Trump’s own camp can no longer remain silent.
The legislation requires Trump to immediately withdraw all U.S. forces from military operations against Iran. Under the 1973 War Powers Act, a "joint resolution" passed by both chambers does not need to be signed by the President at the White House.
When Congress originally established this provision, its intent was to use "joint resolutions" as a mechanism to terminate military operations. But here lies the problem: in 1983, the Supreme Court ruled that such measures must be submitted to the President for signature or veto in order to gain legal force. Since no war powers resolution had ever before been passed by both houses, experts remain uncertain about how exactly this law should be enforced.
The White House has directly stated: the War Powers Act is unconstitutional and thus has no binding effect on us. Researchers from the Brookings Institution also say the White House is highly likely to simply ignore this resolution, citing constitutional grounds. Therefore, multiple media outlets have collectively concluded: this vote is likely symbolic rather than substantive.
But in my view, this vote does reveal certain underlying issues—the core reason for opposition ultimately stems from the fact that the U.S. military failed to achieve victory this time, falling short of the results seen in Venezuela. The U.S. military has exposed critical fatal flaws in command and coordination.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1868838673088524/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.