Five of six members of Kansas’ congressional delegation rejects war-powers resolution
By: Tim Carpenter
Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — Servicemembers in a Kansas Air National Guard air refueling wing deployed in support of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran in conjunction with votes by the U.S. Senate and U.S. House to reject a resolution forbidding the armed forces from continuing to engage in hostilities without congressional consent.
Neither the Kansas National Guard nor the U.S. Central Command initially commented on deployment of Kansas Guard troops. The 190th Air Refueling Wing is stationed at Forbes Field in Topeka, and is one of two refueling wings based in Kansas.
Jane Welch, a spokesperson for the Kansas Guard, subsequently confirmed airmen from the 190th deployed “in early March to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in support of Operation Epic Fury.”
U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican, said he spoke with Kansas Adjutant General Brig. Gen. Paul Schneider about the Kansas Guard’s role in the Middle East.
“Prior to Operation Epic Fury, Kansas guardsmen were already deployed to the region and I wanted to hear firsthand about their mission, their readiness and their needs,” Marshall said. “I have full faith in our Kansas guardsmen and the exceptional leadership overseeing this operation.”
War Powers vote
Marshall was among five members in the Kansas congressional delegation to vote against a joint resolution that would have directed President Donald Trump to cease military operations against Iran pending approval by Congress.
On March 4, the U.S. Senate defeated the motion on a war powers resolution 47-53. The U.S. House voted 212-219 on March 5 against rebuffing Trump for bypassing Congress.
“The United States took decisive, necessary and long overdue military action against Iran’s nuclear program,” said Marshall, who defended the attack on a “regime that has spent nearly 50 years chanting ‘death to America,’ killing and maiming thousands of American soldiers and citizens, and relentlessly pursuing a nuclear weapon that threatens our very existence.”
GOP U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran joined Marshall in opposing the resolution. U.S. Reps. Derek Schmidt, Ron Estes and Tracey Mann, all Republicans, voted against the measure. U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, the delegation’s lone Democrat, voted for it.
Davids, who serves the 3rd District in the Kansas City region, denounced the effort by Iran to develop nuclear weapons. She criticized the Iranian regime’s killing of its own citizens and robbing others of freedom. She said Iran had for decades contributed to global instability by funding terrorism.
“That said, costly, endless wars without congressional authorization are not the answer,” Davids said. “We cannot repeat the mistakes of our past, and I am extremely concerned about what this attack could drag us into. The president has not been granted congressional approval for these acts of war.”
Moran said Iran was guilty of terrorizing its people, financing terror networks, supporting proxy militias, threatening Israel’s security and demonstrating an ambition to enrich uranium for use in missiles that posed a danger to the United States.
He said the engagement of U.S. forces against Iran required the Trump administration to provide “full, timely briefings to Congress so that we can understand the objectives, risks and costs for military action” because “our constitution vests the decision to take our nation to war in Congress.”
Schmidt, the state’s 2nd District congressman, expressed support for U.S. servicemembers in harm’s way, but intentionally had “taken care not to rush to judgment” since the start of U.S. combat operations in Iran.
He said “every person in a position of public responsibility should assess his or her duty with serious mind and with only the best interests of our country for a guide.”
Other Kansas voices
Kansas candidates for federal office weighed into debate about the president’s attack on Iran. The state’s four U.S. House members and Marshall are up for reelection in 2026.
“Supporting our troops means asking the hard questions before the next escalation. Not after it,” said Sandy Spidel Neumann, a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Marshall. “Senators are elected to provide oversight, not automatic approval.”
Democrat Chris Carmichael, who is seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 4th District seat held by Estes, said the U.S. Constitution said Congress, not a president, had authority to wage war.
Calling the attack on Iran a “law enforcement action” didn’t change the fact use of the U.S. military in this instance was an unlawful, impeachable offense, he said.
“When presidents ignore the Constitution, Kansans pay the price,” said Carmichael, who served in the U.S. Air Force from 1992 to 2023, “Troops put at risk, billions wasted overseas, and higher costs at home while families struggle with health care bills and everyday expenses.”