[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 71 (Wednesday, April 22, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1889-S1890]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate will now resume legislative
session.
The Senator from Mississippi.
S.J. Res. 114
Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, and now, just briefly, to rise and oppose
this additional War Powers Resolution, which has been brought by my
colleague from Wisconsin.
We don't mind debating things on the floor of the Senate, and I
welcome them and certainly understand my friend's right and the right
of my fellow Senators to disagree with the President's actions in Iran.
I do not disagree with the President's actions in Iran. I support
them, but I oppose this resolution. We have been through these votes
before. We have been through these votes recently, and nothing has
occurred in the makeup of this body or in the situation in Iran or the
Middle East to materially change since the last time we voted on this
matter.
I think passing this resolution would be unwise, as it would have
been unwise the numerous times we have turned it down already. It would
curtail the President's authority; it would curtail his discretion
while so many servicemembers remain engaged in the region; and I think
it would be dangerous. It would tie the Commander in Chief's hands at a
time when he needs maximum flexibility to eliminate the threat from
Iran.
I don't think negotiations are going to get us anywhere, but if my
colleagues think they are worthwhile, then they should vote no on this
resolution because a ``yes'' vote would weaken the hands of the
negotiators the President has designated. If negotiations have a
chance, the Senate should give them the leverage they need. We could,
with one voice, give them a show of support and maximize whatever
negotiating power they have.
I think history will vindicate the decision that President Donald J.
Trump has made with regard to the situation in Iran. Iran must never
acquire a nuclear weapon, and what we have done with our military goes
a long way to assuring that they will never acquire a nuclear weapon.
It is time for over 4\1/2\ decades of terrorist support from the
Iranian regime to stop. And for that reason and also for the reasons
that have been so eloquently enunciated by my colleagues on this side
of the aisle for the past several weeks, I urge my colleagues not to
support this resolution and to do so on behalf of the future of the
American people.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin.
Ms. BALDWIN. I rise today again to make a final plea to my
colleagues. This President has campaigned for years and espoused the
principle of no new foreign wars. Look, this is something I
wholeheartedly agree with him on. This sentiment, of course, is, in
part, a reaction to the United States' forever wars in the Middle East,
and that is the irony of this.
So much of what we have seen over the last 50 days has parallels with
the war in Iraq. In both wars, we went to war under false pretenses of
a threat to our security. In both wars, we had zero plans for the days
to come and failed to outline our specific goals. In both wars, we had
zero strategy to get out. And in both wars, we had servicemembers dying
overseas for a cause that Americans did not support.
But there is one key difference: In 2001, President Bush made his
case to Congress and got signoff. We had public hearings and an open
debate about the cost of a war--the cost to the American taxpayers, the
cost to military families. Congress then voted on it. Look, I voted
against the Iraq war, and all my fears were sadly proven right, but at
least the American people had a say in it.
This time around, President Trump--who has over and over again called
this a war--hasn't bothered to make his case to the American people.
They have bypassed the people's branch and skirted our very
Constitution. Let's be clear: This Chamber is not powerless. We do have
the power to rein in this President when he breaks a promise and breaks
the law. We have the power to end this war of choice that is costing
American troops their lives and American families their savings. Those
[[Page S1890]]
who vote no are choosing not to use that power.
We cannot wait for more servicemembers to die before we act, the bill
for taxpayers to grow more expensive, or the price of gas and
fertilizer to keep shooting up. We cannot wait for this President to
commit war crimes or kill more civilians. The time is now. It is time
for Congress to assert our authority and to end this war. I encourage
my colleagues to vote yes on this resolution.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The minority leader.
Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, first let me thank Senator Baldwin for
her outstanding leadership, not only on this resolution but on so many
other issues related to Iran as well.
Now, let me say this: Every day this disastrous war continues, Donald
Trump digs himself deeper and deeper into a hole. The longer Trump
waits to extricate the United States from this war, the deeper the hole
gets and the harder it will be for him to get out.
Republican Senators should do Donald Trump a favor and pull him out
of the hole he has dug by voting for a War Powers Resolution today. If
not, they will sink even further into that same hole themselves.
So I urge Senate Republicans to vote for Senator Baldwin's War Powers
Resolution--their fifth opportunity to vote for a War Powers
Resolution, and I was proud to be actively involved to sponsor so many
of them.
Iran's leadership has become even more militant than before the war.
Iran's hold over Hormuz has gotten even stronger. Iran maintains its
economic stranglehold on the world, firing on more merchant ships in
the Strait of Hormuz earlier today.
Meanwhile, gas has been over $4 a gallon for weeks, and that is the
highest it has been in years. Americans are going to pay $740 more this
year to fill up their tanks, on average, because of Trump's war.
Every day we hear new promises from the Trump administration that
victory has been achieved; that peace is at hand; that the costs are
starting to come down; and every day, we see the opposite. Trump can
talk all he wants, but nothing will change until he realizes this war
needs to end.
And if Donald Trump won't dig us out of this hole, Congress must step
into the breach and exercise its constitutional authority over matters
of war and peace. Democrats will continue to force votes on our
resolutions every week until Senate Republicans see reason.
Again, I thank Senator Baldwin for her work. I urge colleagues on
both sides of the aisle to vote yes.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin.
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