The Democrat-led “war powers” vote in the House on Thursday to restrict President Donald Trump’s options in responding to Iranian threats and aggression is non-binding and will have no effect on how he chooses to deal with Iran, for the most part.
Republicans have criticized the vote as nothing more than politics, since as a measure it contains no legal weight or legislation.
Even if if should pass the Senate, which is unlikely, it won’t make it to the president’s desk because of the way it was structured by Democratic leaders.
The , which was sponsored by Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), is structured as what is called a “concurrent resolution” in the House or Senate.
By definition, a “concurrent resolution” is “generally employed to address the sentiments of both chambers, to deal with issues or matters affecting both houses, such as a concurrent budget resolution, or to create a temporary joint committee.”
“Concurrent resolutions are not submitted to the president and thus do not have the force of law,” the official definition continues.
Matt Fuller from the Huffington Post described the effort as more like the House of Representatives adopting a “press release.”
Interestingly, the House resolution constraining Trump's war powers is a concurrent resolution, not a joint resolution, meaning it won't carry the force of law. It's more like a press release.
Basically, it's an admission that this is not getting GOP support in the Senate.
— Matt Fuller
Mark Bednar, a spokesman for House GOP leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), said this is purely a “show vote.”
“House Democrats would rather take a show vote for their socialist base than stand against the world’s largest state sponsor of terror,” Bednar said in an email to Breitbart News.
Trump’s actions against Iran are limited under provisions of the 1973-era War Powers Act, which places legal requirements on the use of American troops in undeclared conflicts. That includes reporting requirements to congress when military action is undertaken.
The president notified Congress of his strike against Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, though the notification was classified.