Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, said he supports the Trump administration's initial military strikes in Iran and would oppose a bipartisan measure to curb the president's use of force without congressional approval.
House leaders in his party are pressing for a vote aimed at limiting President Donald Trump's campaign.
The resolution, co-sponsored by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., could come up for a vote in the House on Thursday.
It directs the president to remove U.S. armed forces from unauthorized hostilities in Iran unless Congress authorizes the action or declares war.
It also says it should not be construed as preventing the United States from defending itself against an imminent attack.
Landsman said the measure would prevent the administration from completing what he described as a narrow mission.
"It would mean that everyone would have to leave, and they wouldn't be able to finish the job," Landsman said of the resolution.
"The job is, very simply, to get rid of the missiles, the launchers, the military assets that this regime has, that could do and has done enormous damage."
Landsman described the administration's approach toward Iran as an obvious decision.
"I'm more of a country-first guy, so whatever I think is best for the country and for my constituents, for the district, in this case, national security. To me, this was a no-brainer," he said.
"They had a window of opportunity to take out very specific military assets in order to defang the Iranian regime. We will be safer as a result," he said.
Landsman said if the Iranian conflict "goes beyond that," the administration would need to seek congressional approval.
Asked again by CNN if he supports the Trump administration's military campaign, Landsman said, "Yeah, I support the targeted strikes."
Other Democrats have signaled unease with the Massie-Khanna approach even as party leaders push for a vote.
A separate group of centrist House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled an alternative war powers resolution that would give the administration more leeway, including a 30-day window to end hostilities and limits on deploying ground troops in a combat role for regime change or occupation.
Axios reported the sponsors included Landsman and Reps. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, Jim Costa and Jimmy Panetta of California, Jared Golden of Maine, and Henry Cuellar of Texas.
The Congressional Progressive Caucus said it backed the resolution and that the House was expected to vote on it this week.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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