A Senate Democrat wants to ensure that Congress can weigh in before the U.S. leaps into ‘another endless conflict’ in the Middle East, a sentiment shared by President Donald Trump.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., on Monday introduced a resolution that would require Congress to debate and vote before any U.S. force is used against Iran. Kaine said in a statement that it was ‘not in our national security interest to get into a war with Iran unless that war is absolutely necessary to defend the United States.’
‘I am deeply concerned that the recent escalation of hostilities between Israel and Iran could quickly pull the United States into another endless conflict,’ he said. ‘The American people have no interest in sending service members to fight another forever war in the Middle East.’
‘This resolution will ensure that if we decide to place our nation’s men and women in uniform into harm’s way, we will have a debate and vote on it in Congress,’ Kaine continued.
Kaine’s sentiment is similar to that of Trump, his former opponent in the 2016 election, when the lawmaker ran alongside former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Trump has painted himself as the consummate anti-war president, vowing during his first term and on the campaign trail during the 2024 election cycle to cease endless wars like those started at the beginning of this century in Afghanistan and Iraq.
However, he noted on Sunday in an interview with ABC News that ‘it’s possible’ the U.S. will get involved amid reports that Israel made a plea for America to join the fray.
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment for this report.
Still, the president has made clear that he would prefer a diplomatic end, urging Iranian leaders to return to the negotiation table to hammer out a nuclear deal.
Most senators are also not keen on the idea of sending American troops onto the battlefield, with many believing that Trump, who they say would never green-light soldiers fighting in yet another war in the Middle East, will be the deciding factor.
Kaine’s resolution is privileged, meaning that the Senate is required to quickly consider and vote on it, and is meant to underscore that ‘Congress has the sole power to declare war’ under the Constitution and that any action against Iran must be ‘explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force.’
The last time Congress formally declared war was in 1942 against Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania. Prior to that, Congress declared war on Japan in 1941.
Since then, lawmakers have green-lit the usage of military force through other avenues, including Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) resolutions, which gives the president the authority to use military force.
One of the most notable AUMFs was approved in 2001, shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in New York City.
