House votes to end Trump’s war on Iran, again

WASHINGTON—By a 220-204 margin, the GOP-run House for the third time defied Trump and approved a resolution to invoke the War Powers Act and bring the troops, munitions, and planes home from the conflict.

With the support of 213 Democrats and seven Republicans—many of them from “swing” districts—the resolution passed Tuesday evening. The other 204 Republicans stuck with Trump and voted against the measure. One Democrat and eight Republicans did not vote.

All five Connecticut House members voted in favor. Rep John Larson (CT-1) issued a statement pointing out that the vote was taken “on the 200^th day since President Trump launched his illegal war in Iran.”

Larson previously introduced legislation to cut off funding for this unauthorized war and filed articles of impeachment against President Trump and  U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for waging war in Iran, in direct contravention of the United States Constitution and international law. 

“The United States Congress has been clear—President Trump needs to end his illegal war in Iran,” said Larson. “Twenty American servicemembers have now lost their lives in the Middle East, and diesel prices have reached record-highs here at home. It is clear that this president views our Constitution as a mere suggestion and not the law of the land. We must enforce the law—and that starts with passing my bill to cut off all funding for this illegal and costly conflict, and block Donald Trump or any future president from waging war without explicit approval from Congress.”

For many of the Democrats, led by sponsor Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., and aided by Reps. Kendrick Meeks, D-N.Y., and Jason Crow, D-Colo., ordering Trump to stop the war and bring the troops home from the conflict is a matter of Congress’s reasserting its constitutional authority to declare war—or not.

Anticipating either a Senate defeat or a Trump veto, Moulton declared “we will keep the pressure on” until Trump ends the war.

“This Congress has not authorized a war with Iran, and yet this administration has kept our troops in harm’s way, without a declaration of war, without an authorization from Congress, and without any plan for how to win or end the war,” added Meeks. In 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, did not declare war on that country until after he took, in accordance with the Constitution, the matter to Congress.

Meeks brought up the economic impact of the war, too.

“We are seven months into a war of choice President Trump said would only last four to six weeks,” said Meeks. Due to the war, “Families have paid over $100 billion more for gasoline and diesel, roughly $800 more per household, while gas averages more than $4 a gallon and diesel is near $6.”

Actually, Meeks understated the hit to U.S. wallets and purses. Prices increased 3.4% from August 2025 to last month, the government reported, while wages lagged behind. Gasoline prices rose by 27.4% over those same 12 months and fuel oil rose by double that (52%).

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reported, just hours before the House’s 7:48 p.m. vote, that the war—which has now cost $38 billion since Trump and Israel began it on Feb. 28—will add at least a further 0.5% to next year’s inflation.

Crow, a former Army Ranger, hit the themes of accountability—and class.

“What is the accountability mechanism?” Crow asked. “The accountability mechanism is Americans are in the driver’s seat because Americans are the ones that have to do the fighting, do the dying, and pay for this. It is not the elites and the pedigreed folks in this administration that are fighting and dying. They are banging the war drums and sending working-class kids like us to go do it.”

The anti-war resolution is expected to hit the Senate later in the week. It’s the third time the House invoked the War Powers Act against Trump, and the number of Republicans increased each time. The GOP-run Senate has held fast with Trump and war, but by small margins.

Trump in turn has made support for his war a litmus test for his party. If so, two-thirds of all U.S. voters fail the test. That’s how unpopular the war is—and it may become even more so.

The war is also affecting workers, and the AFL-CIO recognized that at its convention in Minneapolis in May. Some unions are even tougher on the war than the federation is. One of the bluntest denunciations came from National Nurses United, just four days after Trump began the war.

“We will stand with workers and communities harmed by war, repression, coercion, threats of genocide, and to democratic self-determination,” the AFL-CIO convention resolution said. “We will advocate for an end to wars that threaten workers’ livelihoods, security, and rights. Working people must never be treated as pawns in geopolitical power struggles.”

“The Trump administration has ignored the Constitution and committed yet another imperialist act of war…without approval from Congress,” NNU declared on March 2. “The U.S. attack on Iran is paid for by our patients: Working-class people across the United States who are already struggling here at home to afford basic necessities such as health care, food, and housing.”

While denouncing the brutality of the Iranian government against its own people, NNU called the war “an extension of Trump’s fascist allegiance to the billionaire class and a continuation of decades of U.S. intervention in Iran, beginning with the overthrow of the democratically-elected Iranian government in 1953.

“While prioritizing spending on war abroad, Trump and the Republicans have also openly waged war over the past year on working-class people here at home, gutting Medicaid and Medicare, refusing to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies that keep our patients’ premiums from skyrocketing, and proving that they run the United States to benefit only billionaires and corporations.”

Supreme Court Win Defeats Unlawful Mail Voting Rule

As Connecticut and national organizations prepare for No Kings IV – Vote Early actions on October 17, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the preliminary injunction by Connecticut and a coalition of 24 other states blocking the United States Postal Service from implementing burdensome requirements on vote-by mail systems ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.

“This is a huge win for free and fair elections,” said Tong. “Donald Trump has tried over and over again to seize control of this election, to pick and choose who gets to vote and how we cast our ballots. Tonight, the United States Supreme Court sided with states and gave Donald Trump a big no. I have no illusions that this President is done trying to inject chaos and confusion into this election, but we’re going to be there at every step to fight to protect voters and our democracy,” Tong concluded.

Explaining the decision Tong said, “In denying the Trump Administration’s attempt to stay the injunction, the Supreme Court majority found that the Trump Administration was “unlikely to succeed on the merits” and that “the equitable factors applicable for obtaining emergency relief” favored the states.

Tony said, “The injunction will now continue to block USPS from requiring states to obtain the federal government’s approval of ballot and return-envelope designs, register for a new USPS portal for tracking voter information, input information for each of their state’s voters into the portal, and comply with other provisions.

Absentee ballots become available in Connecticut on September 19 to all voters who need them.

However, emphasis in Connecticut is on early voting which begins on October 19 at every town hall acros the state. A coalition of organizations is preparing to participate in the national No Kings IV events two days earlier on October 17, and encourage voters to vote as early as they can. The events aim to engage social, cultural and neighborhood groups to vote as an act of resistance to Trump administration attempts to prevent voters from participating and steal the election.

Labor Breakfast Launches Door Knocking for Elections

The IBEW hall in Hartford was standing room only at the annual Connecticut AFL-CIO labor breakfast the Friday of Labor Day weekend. Building trades, service workers, educators, health care workers, state workers in the mdist of contract struggles came together with allies serving in and running to be elected to Congress, Governor and the state legislture.

Over scrambled eggs and french toast, union members who are running for office told their stories. Keynote speaker, Congresswoman Jahanna Hayes rallied the crowd with her pledge that “once Democrats are back in the majority we will not slow walk on issues of people's needs, and I will lead in that fight.”

“Last time when we had a trifecta we should not have short stepped, “she said. “Affordability equals child care, and healthcare. We have to deliver on promises made.” Once named national Teacher of the Year, Hayes said that “the largest equity gap is in education. That has to change.”

Hayes said it is unacceptable that there are “two Connecticuts”, and “we have to change that. Unapologetic, firm, demanding leaders will deliver. “ To aplause she concluded,”This time we will center labor as it should be.”

Rep Katlyn Shake, candidate for State Senate in Stratford, called for more working class people to get elected to office at every level, emphasizing the victory last session of passing HB 5003, the most includinve workers' bill every enacted.

Political Director Ryan Hughes highlighted that early voting starts October 19. Union members were asked to sign up for Saturday door knocking. The top goal is to “make the Connecticut General Assembly more pro-union and pro-worker as we deserve.”

Governor Ned Lamont thanked workers in all sectors for keeping the state moving, saying “every day we're standing up for you.”

The program was opened with remarks from healthcare workers fighting for fair contracts at Wndham Hospital owned by Hartford Health and L&M Hospital owned by Yale Health.

President Ed Hawthorne and Secretary-Treasurer Shellye Davis gave greetings. With more people in favor of unions now than ever, now si the time to organize, he said..

Workers at L & M Hospital Take Contract Fight to the Streets

Lawrence & Memorial Hos­pital health­care work­ers in New London have been trying to negotiate a fair contract since their existing contract expired in October, 2025.

Last week they took to the streets for an all-day informational picket in an effort to press the administration to restart contract negotiations. They are demanding fair staff­ing and living wage pay increases.

Despite being understaffed and overworked, the 900 healthcare workers at L&M go above and beyond every day to provide their patients and the community with the best patient care they can.

Extending man­dat­ory on- call schedul­ing for tech­no­lo­gists and para­med­ics is a key issue. Short staffing has led to missed lunch breaks and frequent overtime shifts. Pay increases and better health coverage are also on the table.

AFT Connecticut represents three local unions at Lawrence & Memorial Hospital, now owned by Yale New Haven Health Systems. They include L&M Registered Nurses Local 5049, L&M LPN/Techs Local 5051 and L&M Healthcare Workers Union Local 5123.

Members of Local 5123, talking as they walked, made the case that nurses and members of the other two unions at L&M hospital are underpaid, working conditions are terrible, there’s great turnover leaving more work for the remaining staff, and the hospital requires the workers urgently to come in when it is understaffed.

L&M was unionized at the time it was purchased by Yale Health, which is notoriously anti-union. Contract negotiations are not going well from the union’s point of view. The hospital administration is offering a few cents an hour that wouldn’t even buy a cup of coffee. 

CT AFL-CIO President Ed Hawthorne brought solidarity from organized labor to the information picket.  

Attorney General William Tong drove two hours from his home in Stamford to support these healthcare workers in New London.

Deputy State Senate majority leader Martha Marx told the crowd that she had worked decades as a nurse and well understood what the nurses and other healthcare workers at L&M were going through. In no uncertain terms she offered to help the workers win a good contract. 

Faculty, Students and Community tell Yale: Say No to Trump

 

Cross Campus was filled with a spirited teach-in and rally of faculty, students, staff and alimni at Yale as the academic year began, offering clear demands to the Yale Corporation and Officers to stop negotiating with the Trump administration over admissions and diversity policies, and instead preserve academic rights.

The point was made repeatedly that the actions Yale University takes will impact universities across the country.

The unprecedented “Democratize Yale” coalition of American Association of University Professors, the Yale College Council, the Yale Endowment Justice Collective, and the Stand Up for Yale alimni group joined together with four specific demands.

“Yale is cracking down on student free speech, negotiation with the DOJ over a baseless admissions investigation and refusing to codify academic freedom, all under the governance of an undemocratic Board of Trustees,” said the coalition in a message to new students. “Right now, you don’t have the same rights that generations of Yalies have enjoyed!”

The first demand is Shared Governance to Democratize Yale.

“Yale must eliminate the successor trustee system, reinstate the alumni petition process for the selection of all future trustees, and open voting to all members of the Yale community: students, staff, faculty, and alumni. Trustee meeting agendas must be published online one week prior to each board meeting, minutes must be made publicly available before the next scheduled meeting, and board meetings must be open to the public, livestreamed online, and include time for public comment.”

The second demand is Free Speech and Assembly to Let Students Speak

“Yale must adopt a new free expression policy presuming noninterference with non-violent direct action, including rallies, sit-ins, teach-ins, protests, and demonstrations. There must be neither requirement of prior registration nor administrative approval for such activities. Yale may intervene in expressive activity only to address an imminent safety threat, material obstruction of access, substantial interference with the actual conduct of classes or other essential University functions, or material prevention of another person or group exercising their free speech rights, in accordance with the Woodward Report; any such restriction must be content- and viewpoint-neutral, narrowly tailored to the specific harm, and no more restrictive than necessary. All time, place, and manner restrictions inconsistent with these principles must be repealed.”

The third demand is Academic Freedom

“Yale must codify a legally binding commitment to academic freedom within the faculty handbook, covering all Yale faculty regardless of rank. This must include freedom of research and publication, teaching, participation in internal governance, and public speech as citizens and public intellectuals. The University must clarify that faculty contracts are with Yale University, not individual departments or programs, and protect schools, departments, and programs from closure or defunding without robust and meaningful faculty consultation. Yale must also empower a committee elected by faculty to hear and decide complaints under the academic freedom policy, and it must guarantee faculty participation in all future Handbook revisions through representative faculty bodies.”

The fourth demand is Yale-DOJ Settlement: Don't Cave. Defend Diversity.

“Yale must exit settlement negotiations with the DOJ and publicly commit to defending its admissions policies in court should the need arise, because those policies are lawful and because recruiting an outstandingly well-qualified student body necessarily includes Black and Latine students.”

Prior to the rally New Haven Rising director Rev. Scott Marks issued a similar demand. “It is from our orientation towards partnership that we join many across the region, country, and world in expression our disappointment with the University’s unwillingness to stand up to the Trump administration. Yale is currently negotiating with this administration, and since Yale is a global leader in higher education, its deal may have implications that span far beyond New Haven and Connecticut.”

“The University still has the opportunity to make the right decision,” said Marks. “The right decision is protecting its own autonomy from this federal attack and refusing to negotiate with Trump. The right decision is also to negotiate fair and just deals with campus workers and the New Haven community that begin to address this history and move us collectively forward together toward real partnership.”

A month earlier Mayor Justin Elicker and US Sen Richard Blumenthal along with other elected officials who are Yale alumni delivered the same message to the University, including a warning that if Yale gives in to Trump and no longer serves the public interest their tax exempt status could be in danger.

The Democratize Yale campaign is developing plans for continuing actions aimed at reversing the actions of the Yale Corporation and Board of Trustees.