Democratic senators have filed a fresh wave of war powers resolutions, urging Republicans to hold public hearings on US hostilities with Iran or face votes on continuing a conflict that polls show most Americans oppose. Senators Cory Booker, Tim Kaine, Adam Schiff, Tammy Baldwin and Chris Murphy introduced resolutions under the War Powers Act last week, demanding the withdrawal of US forces from Iran unless Congress authorises the engagement.
The GOP-controlled Congress blocked similar resolutions last week, with Republican leaders arguing that President Donald Trump acted within his authority when the US attacked Iran alongside Israel in late February. Democratic aides say the new resolutions aim to pressure Senate Majority Leader John Thune into convening public hearings with cabinet officials involved in the war effort, or the chamber will be forced to debate and vote on the measures within weeks.
“Have we learned nothing from the last 25 years of war in the Middle East? Americans do not want their taxpayer dollars funding another potential forever war,” the senators said in a joint statement. “Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio must immediately come before Congress for a public hearing and explain why we’re in this war, how it will end, and why they are prioritising billions on an open-ended war instead of lowering costs for American families.”
Hegseth and Rubio have briefed lawmakers behind closed doors, but Democrats say their questions went unanswered. A Senate Armed Services Committee briefing on the military operation, dubbed Epic Fury, is scheduled for Tuesday. Recent polls show the war is unpopular: an NPR/PBS News/Marist survey found 56% of respondents disapproved, including 86% of Democrats and 61% of independents, while 84% of Republicans approved. The conflict has also driven up global oil prices, giving Democrats ammunition to argue Trump has failed to deliver on his promise to lower costs.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer endorsed the push for public hearings, saying: “Donald Trump and his administration owe the American people an explanation. Secretary Rubio, Secretary Hegseth and other senior officials must come to the Senate for public hearings and testify under oath.” The resolutions were filed last Thursday and Friday and can be called for a vote after ten days. They require a simple majority to pass; the GOP holds 53 seats to the Democrats’ 47. In last week’s vote, only Senator John Fetterman among Democrats opposed the resolution, while Senator Rand Paul was the sole Republican supporter.
