The Senate is set to vote Wednesday on a resolution to block President Donald Trump from ordering further strikes on Iran, as Republicans grow increasingly divided over the future of the conflict and how to fund it.
The vote comes amid a fragile ceasefire and just weeks before a key May 1 deadline under the War Powers Resolution, which requires presidents to end unauthorized military action within 60 days or seek congressional approval, reports The Hill on Wednesday.
While Democrats have repeatedly forced votes to halt the war, the more significant debate is unfolding within the GOP, where lawmakers are split over whether to formally authorize the conflict and approve additional funding.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., signaled confidence in the administration's approach and downplayed the need for immediate congressional action.
"They need a plan for how to wind this down and how to get an outcome that actually leads to a safer, more secure Middle East," Thune told reporters, later calling a vote on authorization "a hypothetical down the road."
But a growing number of Republicans are pressing for more oversight as the conflict stretches longer than initially expected.
"The president recognized ahead of time when he first went into Iran that this was going to be a short-term thing, right?" Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said. "We're probably not going to be dealing with 60 days. Well, here we are."
Murkowski is in discussions with other GOP senators about drafting legislation to authorize military force beyond the 60- to 90-day window, a step some view as necessary before approving more funding.
Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, said the White House must meet a "long list" of conditions before he would support extending the war.
Curtis said he wants more clarity on the administration's "goals, objectives, and strategies" and how it plans to end the conflict, warning against a prolonged ground war.
"As far as a large force, that would not be a place I would want to go," he said.
Curtis added that "everybody is worried" about the conflict dragging on indefinitely.
Other Republicans have raised alarms about the war's economic impact. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said constituents have complained about rising costs.
"Diesel over $5, urea for nitrogen for corn, things like that," Grassley noted.
Still, some Republicans support continuing the fight without new limits. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., urged the U.S. to follow through on its objectives.
"Once we made the tough decision to do this, to stir this hornet's nest, you'd better finish the job," Johnson said. "I don't want to leave a regime in place that still wants to create nuclear weapons, to keep producing missiles, to keep producing drones."
The White House has not said whether Trump will seek an extension but said diplomacy remains the goal.
"The president's preference is always diplomacy, and Iran is desperate to make a deal — but they first must renounce their desire for a nuclear weapon and agree to red lines articulated by the United States," White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said.
Trump said Tuesday the conflict is "very close to over," even as U.S. forces continue operations in the region.
The House is expected to vote Thursday on a separate war powers resolution.
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