A Tale of Two Legislatures: War Powers and the Doom Loop in Congress

Lawmakers met yesterday for the last time this week, and what do they have to show for it? Is federal funding ensured – or even extended slightly through a continuing resolution? Don’t be silly; this is the 119th “do nothing” Congress. No, before taking off for an extended weekend, the House passed a war powers resolution to make President Donald Trump stop fighting Iran – and the Senate killed one of its own. Oh, the House version that just passed will eventually get its day in the Senate – next week, perhaps – but why should this resolution fare any better than the one senators voted down yesterday? Meanwhile, the clock keeps ticking away toward the end of the fiscal year.

The Hyperactive House

On Thursday, July 23, the US House of Representatives passed its second resolution to put an end to the fight against Iran. The resolution succeeded 214 to 208. Republican Reps. Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio, Brian K. Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky joined all the Democrats in voting for this resolution, which is a largely symbolic rebuke of the president’s campaign against Iran.

That wasn’t all the House got done this week. On Wednesday, the lower chamber voted 216-214 for a spending package that would provide funding for the military, agriculture, and the GOP plan to bribe states to enact their own SAVE Act measures in return for government grant money. In total, the measure is worth $95 billion in US tax dollars and would establish the framework for the fiscal year 2027 budget. The vote fell mostly along party lines; all but one Democrat voted against it, and all but two Republicans voted for it. You’ll recognize the GOP names: Davidson of Ohio and Massie of Kentucky. The single Democrat registered as not voting was Frederica Wilson, the 84-year-old who’s presently recovering in South Florida following an eye procedure. She hasn’t cast a vote since April.

Indeed, it has been a busy week for the House: The lower chamber has passed a total of 31 bills and resolutions this week. But will anything come of them?

The Sluggish Senate

The answer to that question is: probably not. By comparison, the Senate has passed just four bills or resolutions this week – though it has confirmed some appointments. Most notably, the upper chamber actually did the opposite of the House when it comes to the two big items of the week: the federal budget framework and the war powers resolution. As Liberty Nation News’ Elizabeth Lawrence reported after the House spending vote, “the upper chamber may ‘hold’ the House’s budget framework so Senate Republicans can use it down the line to avoid another government shutdown this fall.”

“It’s a possibility that if necessary we could pull that budget resolution passed by the House and use it to fund government. I hope that’s not necessary,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said. “We’ve had conversations, productive conversations on both sides of the aisle, on a funding resolution that would carry us past the November election.”

That’s hardly a show of enthusiasm for the hard work of his House colleagues – and, let’s face it, that will never pass if it needs so much as a single Democrat vote, if for no other reason than because of the election security measures.

But what of the war powers resolution? Well, shortly after the House passed its version, the Senate voted on one of its own. It failed 47 to 49, though it could have just as well tied or, maybe, even squeaked by with the slightest of margins had the vote gone only just a little differently. For example, John Fetterman (D-PA) was the only Democrat to join Republicans in voting down this war powers resolution. As well, there were four Republicans who didn’t vote and one – Susan Collins of Maine – who voted in favor of the resolution. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) would have been a reliable vote against, most likely, but he remains out of the Swamp recovering from his fall and subsequent illness. Katie Britt (R-AL) was also absent and would likely have been a no vote.

But two senators conspicuously missed the vote who, had they not deliberately chosen to let this play out without them, would almost certainly have voted along with Collins and the Democrats. Republicans Rand Paul of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska have previously supported stopping Trump’s actions in Iran. Their presence, along with Collins’ vote, would have tied it up 49-49, and if Fetterman had toed the party line, the measure would have passed 50-48 – or even 50-49 had Britt shown up as well.

But they didn’t, and so just like the rest of what the House managed to pass, the Senate shot it down.

War Powers and Real Power

In times like these, the Senate’s inaction may make much of what the House accomplishes seem like a waste of effort. But when it comes to war powers resolutions, the point really does seem moot no matter how the votes go. First off, just like any other bit of legislation, the president has to sign it into law or allow it to become law without his signature. If, instead, he chooses to veto it, then both chambers must achieve a two-thirds supermajority to force it. Take a look again at the actual vote totals – 214 to 208 in the House and 47 to 49 in the Senate – even if we take that hypothetical 50-48 that could have been, neither chamber comes anywhere close to busting a veto.

As well, it wouldn’t be the first time a president – or even this president, for that matter – has either explained away the fighting as not really a war or simply ignored the demands of Congress entirely. And what consequences does this bring, historically? Bupkis.

In a real, practical sense, nothing Congress is doing right now really matters or will have any real effect on America – except, of course, for this: their inaction. They aren’t passing spending bills that can clear both chambers and keep the government operating beyond September 30, and they aren’t skipping their vacation days to make sure the job gets done. So, when the year ends and the funds dry up, the result of what they’re doing right now will almost certainly be yet another federal government shutdown that accomplishes nothing but creating an inconvenience for some federal workers and the general public, costing America even more money to fix.