By a 54-46 margin, the Senate has passed a new bill requiring an end to United States support for Saudi Arabian military actions in Yemen. Seven Republicans voted for the bill, as did all Senate Democrats.
“It’s becoming clearer and clearer that the kingdom of Saudi Arabia is not an ally that deserves our unwavering, unquestioning, unflinching support,” said Utah Sen. Mike Lee, the lead Republican sponsor of the War Powers resolution. “It is not an ally that deserves our support or our military intervention.”
The bill will now go to the Democratic House, where it is expected to pass. (The House already passed a similar bill, but will have to re-vote on the Senate version due to discrepancies caused by Republican amendments to that prior bill.)
The Senate version is the product of opposition to the war led by Sens. Bernie Sanders, Mike Lee, and Chris Murphy, and is another rebuke of the Trump administration's cozy relationship with the kingdom even after the murder of a Washington Post-published journalist and worldwide anger over Saudi atrocities in Yemen. Trump is likely to veto the bill.