WASHINGTON — The House rejected a Thursday effort by Democrats to end the war in Iran and require President Donald Trump to get congressional authorization before proceeding.

But the vote on approving a war powers resolution was as tight as it could get: tied 212 to 212, which counts as a failed vote. And Democrats netted two more Republicans compared to the last time they forced a vote on a war powers measure in April — a sign of the GOP’s growing discomfort with Trump’s war without end.

Republican Reps. Thomas Massie (Ky.), Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.) and Tom Barrett (Mich.) voted with Democrats in support of the resolution put forward by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.). Massie had previously supported putting parameters on the scope and duration of Trump’s military actions, but Fitzpatrick and Barrett had opposed these resolutions until now.

Thursday’s vote marks the third time this year Democrats have put Iran war powers resolutions on the House floor. In April, their resolution failed to pass by one vote.

“The dam is breaking,” said Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. “Today’s tied vote signals that more Republicans are no longer willing to write this president a blank check for endless war.”

Democrats plan to keep bringing these measures to the House floor, as soon as next week. And these votes will only get more uncomfortable for Republicans. Americans increasingly say they disapprove of Trump’s handling of the war, and many GOP members of Congress are eying tough reelections in November. Barrett is among them; his race is rated a “toss-up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

“Next week, Democrats will again force a vote on a War Powers Resolution,” Meeks said in a statement. “To those who refuse to cede Congressional power and believe in the rule of law, join Democrats in calling for an end to this disastrous, open-ended war. Enough is enough.”

Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), for one, introduced another one of these resolutions on Thursday.

“Every day this unnecessary, reckless war continues is another day that my constituents who are deployed to Iran are in harm’s way and at risk of losing their lives,” said Jacobs, whose San Diego district is home to the country’s biggest military community.

“Our service members deserve better than to be treated as expendable ― and so do the American people who are being forced to pay over $1 billion per day for this military adventurism,” she said. “My colleagues who are blindly supporting this war may not have to answer to our troops, but I do, and I will do everything in my power to protect them.”

One Democrat has been opposing all of these resolutions: Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine). He’s argued that the way they’ve been written has rendered them moot, as Trump has already blown past the 60-day deadline for carrying out military operations without Congress’ sign-off. But he said Wednesday that he could support a “clean, relevant” Iran war powers measure.

Republicans in the Senate have also begun joining Democrats in their push to rein in Trump’s actions in Iran. On Wednesday, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) became the third GOP senator to back a resolution requiring the president to get congressional authorization to continue with combat operations. This was after she voted six times this year against such measures.

Murkowski appeared to call Trump’s bluff in her decision to switch her vote, saying his administration has already said U.S. military hostilities are over in Iran. The president, for months, has repeatedly claimed the war is over as military operations continue.

“The administration’s own position removes any justification for keeping our servicemembers in harm’s way without congressional authorization,” said the Alaska senator. “If U.S. forces are still required to operate in the region or hostilities are resumed, the administration is obligated to seek authorization from Congress and should come before this body, and the American people, making that case.”

By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.