WASHINGTON (Azat TV) – U.S. lawmakers are demanding an immediate congressional vote on a War Powers Resolution following President Donald Trump’s announcement of a major U.S.-Israeli military operation against Iran. The joint assault, dubbed “Operation Epic Fury,” was launched early Saturday, February 28, 2026, intensifying a constitutional debate over presidential authority to initiate military conflicts without explicit congressional approval.
President Trump confirmed the operation in a video posted on Truth Social, urging Iranian military forces to surrender and civilians to “rise up and take over your government.” He told the Washington Post that the objective was to secure freedom and safety for the Iranian people, following weeks of heightened tensions.
Calls for Immediate Congressional Vote on Iran War Powers
The military action immediately triggered widespread calls from a bipartisan group of lawmakers for Congress to reconvene and vote on a War Powers Resolution. Representative Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, and Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, who had previously co-introduced a resolution in June 2025 to compel presidential authorization for hostilities against Iran, demanded an immediate vote. Khanna stated on Saturday morning that Congress “must convene on Monday to vote on Thomas Massie’s and my war powers resolution to stop this war.” He urged congressional members to publicly share their voting intentions over the weekend, emphasizing that “the American people are tired of regime change, wars that cost us billions of dollars and risk our lives.”
Senator Tim Kaine, a Democrat from Virginia, echoed these sentiments, calling for the Senate to “immediately return to session” to vote on a bipartisan war powers resolution aimed at blocking the use of U.S. forces in hostilities against Iran. Kaine questioned whether President Trump had “learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East.” Additionally, Representative Gregory Meeks, a Democrat from New York, had announced plans on Thursday to force a vote on a resolution requiring congressional approval for any military strikes on Iran, further highlighting congressional intent to assert its constitutional role.
Lawmakers Divided Over “Operation Epic Fury”
Reactions to “Operation Epic Fury” were sharply divided across party lines, reflecting deep fissures within Congress regarding U.S. foreign policy and the scope of presidential war powers. Supporters of the operation praised President Trump’s decisive action.
Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican from Mississippi and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, described the action as a “pivotal and necessary operation to protect Americans and American interests,” asserting that the “Iranian regime has never been weaker.” Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina and a staunch Trump ally, characterized the operation as “well-planned” and predicted it would be “violent, extensive and I believe, at the end of the day, successful.” He expressed hope that “the murderous ayatollah’s regime in Iran will soon be no more.” Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas and chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, stated that “the butcher’s bill has finally come due for the ayatollahs.” Representative Nancy Mace, a Republican from South Carolina, also backed the president, writing on social media that “peace is not found in appeasement — it is won.”
Concerns Over “War of Choice” and Escalation Risks
Conversely, many Democratic lawmakers, and some Republicans, voiced strong opposition and grave concerns about the potential for escalation and the legality of the operation. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, a Democrat and vice chair of the Intelligence Committee, called the military operation “a deeply consequential decision that risks pulling the United States into another broad conflict in the Middle East.” While condemning the Iranian regime, Warner stressed that “acknowledging those realities does not relieve any president of the responsibility to act within the law, with a clear strategy, and with Congress.” He warned against “repeating the mistakes of the past” with claims of urgency and misrepresented intelligence.
Representative Jim Himes, a ranking member of the Intelligence Committee and a member of the “Gang of Eight” congressional leaders briefed on classified intelligence, labeled the operation “a war of choice with no strategic endgame.” Himes reportedly cautioned Secretary of State Marco Rubio during his briefing that “military action in this region almost never ends well for the United States.” Senator Ruben Gallego, a Democrat from Arizona and an Iraq War veteran, criticized the operation, stating, “I lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war. Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn’t been explained or justified to the American people.” Senator Andy Kim, a Democrat from New Jersey, also asserted that President Trump had “repeated the mistakes of the Iraq War era.”
The swift launch of “Operation Epic Fury” and the immediate, forceful calls for congressional intervention highlight a persistent constitutional tension regarding war-making powers between the executive and legislative branches, particularly in the context of major military engagements in the Middle East. The debate underscores profound divisions within the U.S. political landscape over the nation’s foreign policy direction and the legal framework for initiating armed conflict.