The House Voted 220-204 to Pull U.S. Forces Out of the Iran War, the Third Time Since June. Nancy Mace and Both Iowa Republicans Flipped, and the Senate Has No Plans to Take It Up Before November.

The House of Representatives voted 220-204 on Tuesday evening to direct President Trump to remove U.S. forces from hostilities with Iran, the third time since June that the chamber has tried to end a war that began on Feb. 28 and was supposed to last four to six weeks. Seven Republicans joined the Democrats, three more than on either of the two previous attempts.

The new Republican votes came from Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn of Iowa, both of whom face competitive reelection races in November. They joined Tom Barrett of Michigan, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who had backed the earlier resolutions in June and July. The resolution was introduced by Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, a Marine veteran of Iraq, with Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado, and directs the president "to remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities" with Iran under Section 5(c) of the 1973 War Powers Resolution.

Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the Foreign Affairs Committee, laid out the case during floor debate. "Congress has not authorized a war with Iran," he said. "And yet this administration has kept our troops in harm's way, without a declaration of war." Meeks said 19 service members have been killed and more than 750 wounded, that the conflict has added more than $100 billion in spending, and that the average household has paid roughly $800 more for gasoline and diesel, with gas averaging above $4 a gallon and diesel near $6. He noted that his committee has held no public hearings on the war.

The numbers from outside Congress are only slightly less stark. The Congressional Budget Office estimated this week that Operation Epic Fury is costing $2 billion to $3 billion a month, with direct costs reaching $38 billion through Aug. 1. The Pentagon's own inspector general, in a report released Monday, said $33.4 billion had been spent by the end of June, including $22.3 billion in munitions that left "strategic inventory shortfalls." CBS News published photographs Tuesday showing extensive damage from Iranian drone and missile strikes at U.S. positions in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, including direct hits on aircraft.

The vote landed on a day of escalating pressure on the Pentagon. Massie, who lost his primary in May and leaves Congress in January, introduced articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday. "By engaging in hostilities in Iran for more than 90 days without congressional authorization, Secretary Hegseth is breaking the law," he said. Attorney General Todd Blanche, speaking at the White House briefing, said Hegseth was "doing a phenomenal job" and followed every legal requirement, and he disputed calling the conflict a war at all.

None of it is likely to change anything soon. A concurrent resolution has no legal force without Senate passage, and the Senate has not scheduled a vote on the House measure before the midterms; a July version is still pending there. The Senate has repeatedly voted down its own versions. What Tuesday's vote does show is a slow migration of Republican support away from the war. In June, four Republicans defected. On Tuesday it was seven, including two Iowa incumbents who campaigned alongside Trump administration officials as recently as August. The next test is the ballot box, where voters in their districts will be able to say whether they think the war is worth it.