Senators voted Wednesday to advance a proposal that would for the first time put a check on the president’s use of military force abroad.
Lawmakers voted 60-39 to begin debate on a resolution to invoke the War Powers Act to stop U.S. support of the Saudi-led war in Yemen.
But while the vote is another sign of congressional anger over U.S. involvement in Yemen, the resolution isn’t expected to go much further thanks to GOP leaders and President Trump. Just before the Senate vote, the House passed a resolution blocking the Yemen measure from coming up for a vote in the lower chamber.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has also urged lawmakers to block the Yemen resolution, arguing it is too broad. He said lawmakers should instead wait for a forthcoming resolution addressing both Yemen and the Khashoggi murder.
Still, the vote is a sign that most in the Senate favor some tougher step against Saudi Arabia after the brutal October death of dissident Jamal Khashoggi. Many in Congress blame Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for Khashoggi’s death.
Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., sponsored the resolution and won support from lawmakers eager to help end the Yemen conflict, which has caused a humanitarian crisis.
Late last month, the Senate voted 63-37 to remove the resolution from a Senate committee and bring it to the Senate floor.
McConnell complained after the Senate vote that the War Powers Act resolution doesn’t include any process for limiting amendments to the resolution and said he doesn’t generally favor rushing legislation to the floor as the Senate is doing.
McConnell opened the floor up to a debate and vote on whether and how amendments might be limited in these circumstances.
