Massie, 3 Other House Republicans Broke From Trump on Iran War Powers Vote

Four House Republicans crossed party lines on Wednesday and voted to limit President Trump’s power to continue directing military action in Iran without congressional authorization, delivering a rebuke of the war that recently entered its fourth month.The four hail from different factions within the G.O.P.; two are staunch conservatives with libertarian views that include opposition to foreign military intervention, while the other two are more mainstream Republicans from competitive districts where backing for the war could be a political liability.All of them expressed a firm belief that Congress, not the president alone, must weigh in on the scope and objectives of the war.The measure they supported does not require a presidential signature but still faces long odds of being enacted — and even if it were, it would likely be challenged by the administration.

But its adoption, along with a similar measure advancing in the Senate in recent weeks, was a clear repudiation of Mr.Trump’s handling of the war in Iran.

It reflected growing uneasiness within his own party about an unpopular war that has dragged on well past when the president said it would.Here is a look at who defected, and why.Warren Davidson of OhioRepresentative Warren Davidson of Ohio, is a conservative and a libertarian who has long argued that Congress, not the president, should decide whether the United States enters military conflicts.A former member of the House Freedom Caucus and a frequent ally of Mr.Trump on domestic policy, Mr.

Davidson has often broken with leaders of both parties on questions involving war powers, surveillance authorities and executive branch power.He was among the first Republicans to break with Mr.Trump on the war in Iran, siding with Democrats in March on the first war powers resolution they offered after the conflict began.

But after facing pressure from the White House and Republican leaders, he had reversed himself and joined the rest of his party in opposing...