{"id":51698,"date":"2019-03-13T22:36:30","date_gmt":"2019-03-13T22:36:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2019\/03\/13\/us-senate-passes-yemen-resolution-54-46\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:44:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:44:08","slug":"us-senate-passes-yemen-resolution-54-46","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/13\/us-senate-passes-yemen-resolution-54-46\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate passes resolution to end US support of Saudi Arabia in Yemen, 54-46"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Defying a White House veto threat<\/a>, the Senate voted 54-46 on Wednesday to end U.S. support for the Saudi Arabian-led coalition fighting in Yemen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The passage of the measure, which was co-sponsored by Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, marks the first time lawmakers have invoked the decades-old War Powers Resolution to halt American military involvement in a foreign conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s also another strong rebuke of President Donald Trump\u2019s support for Saudi Arabia, which has been a point of tension<\/a> with Congress since the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi<\/a> last year. Lawmakers from both parties have called for a reappraisal of the U.S.-Saudi relationship and accused Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of being involved in Khashoggi\u2019s murder, even as Trump has stood by the the Saudi leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hours ahead of the vote, the White House statement threatening a veto, arguing that U.S. support for the Saudis does not constitute engaging in \u201chostilities\u201d and that the resolution could undermine the fight against violent extremism. The Yemen resolution \u201cseeks to override the President\u2019s determination as Commander in Chief,\u201d the statement said, and \u201cwould harm bilateral relationships in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy defining \u2018hostilities\u2019 to include defense cooperation such as aerial refueling,\u201d the statement said, the Yemen resolution could \u201cestablish bad precedent for future legislation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a Senate floor speech ahead of the vote, Sanders said that Congress is reclaiming its constitutional war powers to end America\u2019s complicity in a humanitarian crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have been providing the bombs that the Saudi-led coalition is using, we have been refueling their planes before they drop those bombs, and we have been assisting with intelligence,\u201d Sanders said. \u201cIn too many cases our weapons are being used to kill civilians. In August it was an American-made bomb that obliterated a school bus full of young boys, killing dozens and wounding many more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t