Sen. Tim Kaine condemns U.S. strikes, pushes Iran war powers resolution

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine is urging Congress to vote on a resolution that restricts unauthorized military action in Iran after joint strikes from the U.S. and Israel on Saturday killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Kaine on Sunday, March 1, condemned the ongoing strikes that have since killed three American service members and wounded five others, saying that President Donald Trump "learned nothing" from previous wars. The Virginia senator on Sunday said the Trump administration ran on promises of ending wars, yet it has used the military without congressional authorization.

"This is no way for a nation to go to war," Kaine said.

Kaine introduced the bipartisan war powers resolution on Jan. 19. The Democratic senator has repeatedly called on his colleagues at the Capitol to vote on the legislation in the coming days.

"I will do anything in my power to stop our nation [from] sending kids, Virginians, our youngsters into war without a legitimate justification," Kaine said in part.

Kaine said he intends to continue filing other resolutions if the war powers legislation fails the Senate early next week.

Virginia lawmakers have shared mixed responses after the U.S.-Israeli attack. While some Republican leaders supported President Donald Trump and said the strikes were necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, several other Democratic leaders criticized the targeted attacks.