The Brief

Nick Kroll is no stranger to L.A.’s comedy scene.

After starting his career in New York, Kroll moved to L.A. in 2007.

“I remember my dream was to perform at Largo back when it was on Fairfax and now it’s Largo at the Coronet, which has become my sort of home stand-up club in L.A.,” Kroll told Larry Mantle on AirTalk, LAist 89.3’s daily news program.

The comedian has far surpassed those dreams. He's now the co-creator and voice actor of the hit adult animated series Big Mouth and star of comedy specials such as Little Big Boy and Oh, Hello on Broadway (all on Netflix).

Still, Kroll maintains his love for L.A. as a unique place for stand-up comedy.

Kroll shared his thoughts on L.A.’s vibrant comedy scene and the changing landscape of modern stand-up comedy ahead of one of the biggest comedy events of the year, Netflix Is A Joke Fest.

The evolution of L.A.'s comedy scene

“There was a sort of an alternative scene and then there was sort of a club comedy scene. But now there’s The Comedy Store and the Improv and the Laugh Factory, as well as amazing alternative venues all over the city.

What’s been fun is to watch all of those different scenes begin to integrate and create a much larger comedy world where that serves so many different audiences and so many different audiences are finding crossover inside those different kinds of spaces.”

Netflix's influence on comedy

Actress and comedian Ali Wong accepts the award for Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Or Anthology Series Or Movie for "Beef" during the 75th Emmy Awards.

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“I think it can take a comedian who would have, in the past, been able to perform at clubs around the country just as a working comedian, and really expand their audience. Like someone like Ali Wong, who before her special, was an amazing comedian and was a working comedian. The exposure that Netflix gave her has made her a household name. And she’s obviously gone on to do other kinds of stuff, like Beef for Netflix.

Someone like Ali or John Mulaney, who I have known forever, since college — those specials really expanded their audience on a scale that has made comedy not just a niche element of American entertainment, but a central pivotal venue for entertainment.”

The economics of comedy in the internet age

“It’s opened up tremendously from where it was. Montreal, it was a comedy festival, and there was another one in Aspen when I was starting out. If you were at my stage, or at the beginning of your career, you really needed to go to one of those festivals and get noticed, get signed by agents, managers. Hopefully get some sort of deal to develop a sitcom, or maybe, once in a blue moon, get an HBO special.

That has changed dramatically. Aspen is no more. Montreal is in real financial trouble.

I think it’s because the internet has just opened all of that up so much. If you’re a funny person and you start to make funny videos on TikTok, or you have a podcast that builds an audience, or you’re on Patreon and you have a dedicated group of people … you can build audiences in so many ways and build revenue streams for yourself in so many ways. That has changed the economics of it.”

Comedy as a mode to tell universal truths

Hosts John Mulaney (L) and Nick Kroll speak onstage during the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards.

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“I think it allowed people to speak to their specific experience and that in turn will speak to an audience that has either a shared experience or an interest in another point of view.

I think what sets apart certain comedians inside of that is that they speak to their specific experience, but in doing so, speak to some universal truths or a relatability to a broader audience that might not have the same shared experience but can feel, you know, frustrations about parenting, or being unlucky in love, or just observations on culture — that allow people to engage and relate, even if its not exactly what their point of view or life is.”

Favorite venues

There are still thriving comedy clubs in L.A. for comedians looking to perform live. Kroll recommends “doing spots at the Comedy Store” or places like Largo, Dynasty Typewriter, or The Elysian.

“There’s plenty of venues that aren’t going to necessarily make you an incredible living but can help you get out of having a day job so that you can focus on your comedy,” he said.

Netflix is a Joke Fest runs from May 1-12 in Los Angeles. Learn more at Netflixisajokefest.com.    

There will be a “Big Mouth” live event at the Greek Theatre on May 2 at 8 p.m., featuring Kroll, John Mulaney, Maya Rudolph, Jessi Klein, Fred Armisen and many more as part of Netflix is a Joke Fest.  

Listen here

Listen to Larry’s conversation with Nick Kroll and Robbie Praw, Netflix's head of comedy and creator of Netflix is a Joke Fest.

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When a possible measles case is identified in California, a phone rings at the local health department and the clock starts ticking.

Laboratory workers need to process samples as soon as possible to confirm the case. And a public health nurse must call the patient to find out where they’ve been and who they’ve been in contact with recently.

If test results are positive, the communicable disease team has 72 hours or less to identify anyone who has been exposed and may be at high risk of infection or serious illness. Those people must quarantine or take a dose of a post-exposure prophylaxis to prevent spread. For the next 21 days nurses will monitor the group for symptoms.

Measles is the most contagious vaccine-preventable viral infection in the world, and California is fighting multiple outbreaks. In a room where one person is infected, nine out of 10 unvaccinated people will also contract the disease. The viral particles also linger in the air long after the contagious person leaves, risking exposure to those who enter the room up to two hours later.

“That’s ridiculously infectious,” said Dr. Sharon Balter, director of acute communicable disease control with Los Angeles County public health. “It balloons very quickly, and because measles spreads very fast we have to get on it right away. We can’t say we’ll wait until tomorrow.”

California has a high enough vaccination rate — about 95% of kindergarteners — to provide herd immunity against measles, but throughout the state pockets of unvaccinated communities drive outbreaks, experts say.

Shasta and Riverside counties are working to contain localized outbreaks. These are the first measles outbreaks in the state since 2020 and are happening at a time when health departments have less money and fewer staff than in recent years. In total, seven counties have reported a total of 21 measles cases this year, according to the California Department of Public Health.

Throughout the country, 26 states have reported measles cases since the start of the year, including a massive outbreak in South Carolina where officials identified nearly 1,000 cases, mostly among unvaccinated children. It is the largest outbreak since theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention declared measles eradicated more than 25 years ago.

“The United States is experiencing the highest numbers of measles cases, outbreaks, hospitalizations and deaths in more than 30 years, driven by populations with low vaccination rates,” said California Public Health Officer Dr. Erica Pan in a statement earlier this month. “We all need to work together to share the medical evidence, benefits, and safety of vaccines to provide families the information they need to protect children and our communities."

Containment comes with high costs

Investigating any communicable disease is time-intensive and expensive. The first three measles cases reported in L.A. County this year cost an estimated $231,000, according to a health department analysis.

Why does it cost so much? Because a disease investigation often requires a legion of public health nurses, physicians, epidemiologists and laboratory scientists to follow-up with hundreds of contacts, Balter said.

A computer shows an analysis of measles sequencing results at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health laboratory in Downey on Feb. 26, 2026.

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That includes sometimes visiting homes or exposure sites. For example, a recent exposure at a daycare required nurses to wring urine out of used diapers to test babies for measles. County health workers monitored 246 people who had been exposed to those first three measles cases — and the work is ongoing.

On Feb. 19, the county reported its fourth measles case. All of them were related to international travel. Other cases in California also have primarily been related to travel either internationally or to states where there are outbreaks. An unvaccinated child in Napa County contracted measles in January after traveling to South Carolina.

Riverside County health officials reported one measles case where the child had not traveled recently, and Shasta County health officials suspect their first case could be related to travel in Southern California but are waiting for DNA testing for confirmation.

Orange County reported two travel-related cases this year.

Health departments have fewer resources, more cases

Local health departments rely heavily on federal funding to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, but last year, the Trump administration slashed nearly $1 billion of public health funding from California. This year it attempted to claw back another $600 million from California and three other Democratic states.

Pending lawsuits froze the cuts, but local health departments are treating the money as a lost cause because they cannot bear the financial risk if a judge eventually rules in favor of the Trump administration.

Consequently, health departments closed clinics, terminated programs and laid off dozens of workers.

“What we can do with less is less unfortunately,” Balter said. L.A. county is facing a $50 million shortfall due to federal, state and local cuts and recently closed seven public health clinics.

Health departments are also confronting decreased public confidence: The high-profile questioning of vaccine safety and effectiveness by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has complicated public health’s struggle to contain the spread of preventable infections.

California Democratic leaders are aggressively fighting Kennedy’s direction. They sued to block the administration’s new vaccine guidelines, which stripped universal recommendation from seven childhood vaccines. They blame Kennedy and the Trump administration for “dismantling” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and stoking fears over debunked claims that vaccines cause autism.

The state also released its own vaccine guidelines and formed an alliance among four western states to share public health information and recommendations.

“Everything including the outbreaks, the financial cuts, the questions from the federal government that are arising are making our work very difficult,” said Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong, Orange County public health officer.

Lab Assistant Abraham Jimenez loads blood samples for automated serology testing for measles immunity status at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health laboratory in Downey on Feb. 26, 2026.

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Lab Assistant Abraham Jimenez loads blood samples for automated serology testing for measles immunity status at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health laboratory in Downey on Feb. 26, 2026.

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Twelve years ago, Orange County was the site of California’s largest measles outbreak in decades. An exposure at Disneyland from an unknown source infected 131 Californians and spread to six states, Canada and Mexico.

The outbreak, which lasted four months, spurred state lawmakers to pass some of the strictest childhood vaccine requirements in the country.

But even a single measles case requires “vast amounts of infrastructure” to contain, Chinsio-Kwong said. On average, the department identifies and monitors 100 exposed people per case. Since the start of last year, Orange County has lost $22 million in federal cuts to public health. The department is trying to protect their communicable disease surveillance work, but it gets harder with every cut.

“We're trying to prioritize our communicable disease control division,” health officer Chinsio-Kwong said. “There are a lot of different federal cuts, but we're putting that as front and center: That has to be saved no matter what.”

Measles spread in unvaccinated groups

Six hundred miles north, Shasta County is grappling with its first measles cases since 2019 and the state’s largest outbreak of the year.

In late January, a sick child visited a health clinic in Redding with measles symptoms that laboratory testing later confirmed. Health officials interviewed 278 people and identified six locations where others were exposed: a restaurant, a church basketball game, a gym, a park, Costco and the clinic.

They also identified seven other cases among family members or neighbors who were in close contact with the child.

It can take 21 days from the time of exposure for measles symptoms to develop. On Feb. 19, just before the end of that period, health officials confirmed a ninth case.

That person didn’t recognize the symptoms and visited several places while contagious, including a school, a church service, a basketball game and a clinic, said Daniel Walker, a Shasta County supervising epidemiologist. Now, the contract tracing process has started over. The communicable disease team expects to interview even more people this time.

All cases have been among children who were unvaccinated or did not know their vaccination status.

“It’s a great time to get immunized, because you can’t know when you’re next going to be exposed…especially because we’re in an outbreak situation,” Walker said.

Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF), which works to ensure that people have access to the care they need, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Visit www.chcf.org to learn more.

This article was originally published on CalMatters and was republished under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.

The U.S. attacks on Iran over the weekend, in conjunction with the Israeli military, marked a stunning new phase in relations between the two countries.
But it is hardly the first time Washington and Tehran have clashed politically and militarily.

Here are some key historical moments between the U.S. and Iran.

1953: U.S. helps orchestrate coup that overthrows Mohammad Mosaddegh

Great Britain had controlled Iran's oil industry for decades, but in 1953 Iran's elected prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddegh, nationalized the country's oil sector.

That move prompted Great Britain to appeal to the U.S. for help, and what resulted was a CIA-led campaign to topple Mosaddegh's government. The coup allowed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last shah (or king) of Iran, to consolidate power around himself. (The CIA, long suspected of having a hand in the revolt, officially acknowledged its role in 2013.)

Mosaddegh was imprisoned and later placed under house arrest until his death in 1967. Pahlavi went on to lead Iran for the next two and a half decades, becoming a strong U.S. ally.

1979: Iranian Revolution and U.S. hostage crisis

Iranian opposition leader in exile Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini gives a speech as journalists surround him at Roissy airport near Paris on Jan. 31, 1979, before boarding a plane bound for Tehran. Khomeini establishes an Islamic republic in Iran.

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In early 1979, following months of protests by secularists, Islamists and leftists against his autocratic rule, Pahlavi fled Iran and entered the U.S.

The revolution had been led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a Shia cleric who was living in exile near Paris after being expelled by Pahlavi in 1964. Khomeini returned to Iran and oversaw the country's transition to an Islamic republic, becoming Iran's supreme leader. Khomeini established a hard-line theocracy and labeled America the "Great Satan."
In November of that year, a group of Iranian students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and captured 66 Americans.

A U.S. rescue attempt in the spring of 1980 codenamed Operation Eagle Claw, which was approved by President Jimmy Carter, was hampered by mechanical problems, a severe dust storm and a crash that killed eight service members. It failed to secure the release of the hostages.

After 444 days in captivity, the remaining 52 hostages were released on Jan. 20, 1981 — the day President Ronald Reagan was inaugurated.

Early 1980s: The Iran-Contra affair

Reagan's tenure was also marked by a now-infamous transaction with Iran.

Officials in his administration were discovered to have sold weapons to the country in the hope that it would help secure the release of American hostages held in Lebanon by Hezbollah, a militant group allied with Iran.

The Reagan administration used the proceeds of the arms sales to fund the paramilitary Contra rebel group fighting against the socialist Sandinista government in Nicaragua.

Reagan confirmed the story in a 1986 White House press conference and took public responsibility for what's become known as the Iran-Contra affair.

Late 1980s: Tensions in the Persian Gulf

Thousands of people mourn in July 1988 in Tehran, during the funeral service for those who died when an Iranian passenger jet was shot down over the Gulf by the U.S. military.

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Iran and Iraq were engaged in a war since 1980, and toward the end of that decade, Iran began to attack oil tankers belonging to Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, Iraq's financial supporters.

In 1987 the U.S. begins a military campaign known as Operation Earnest Will to protect Kuwaiti tankers.

During that operation in 1988, the U.S. frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts struck an Iranian mine, which punched a 15-foot hole in the hull but did not kill any American sailors.

Still, that incident touched off another military operation called Operation Praying Mantis, in which U.S. forces retaliated for the explosion by attacking several Iranian oil platforms.

Also in 1988, the U.S. Navy shot down the civilian Iran Air Flight 655, killing all 290 people on board. U.S. forces mistook the plane for an Iranian fighter jet.

2015: Obama inks the Iranian nuclear deal

The U.S. reached a deal with Iran and five other world powers to curb Iran's nuclear capabilities in exchange for the removal of some punishing United Nations sanctions.

The deal allowed Iran to continue enriching uranium for civilian energy purposes, but President Barack Obama argued that it would curb the country's ability to create a nuclear bomb. Iran also agreed to increased inspections of its nuclear facilities.

In 2018, Trump during his first term pulled the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran.

The Biden administration held indirect talks with Iran, and when Trump returned to office in 2025 he signed an executive order with the goal of exerting "maximum" pressure on Iran to end its nuclear weapons ambitions.

2020: U.S. drone strike kills Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani

A major recent development in U.S.-Iran relations occurred not in Iran itself but in neighboring Iraq.

Just a few days into 2020, U.S. forces launched a drone strike near the Baghdad International Airport and killed Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, among others.

Soleimani, who led an elite branch of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps known as the Quds Force, was seen as one of the country's most influential officials.

Khamenei responded at the time that "harsh retaliation is waiting" for the U.S. Several days later, Iran fired at least a dozen ballistic missiles at two military bases in Iraq that house U.S. troops. The Pentagon said the following month that 109 U.S. troops suffered brain injuries in the strikes.

2025: U.S. and Israel strike Iranian nuclear sites

In June, the U.S. and Israeli militaries launched a dramatic assault on several Iranian nuclear sites. For the U.S., the military escalation followed what had largely been a diplomatic effort to deter Tehran from pursuing a nuclear weapon.

Trump said in a speech from the White House that the goal of the operation was to scuttle Iran's nuclear enrichment capabilities.

"Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular military success. Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated," Trump said, though there are questions about exactly how much damage was dealt.

The attacks came roughly two months after the U.S. and Iran began a new round of talks to renegotiate a deal concerning Iran's nuclear program.

In March, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard had said that U.S. intelligence believes Iran "is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003."

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The war over Iran engulfed more of the Middle East and beyond on Monday as strikes intensified, Iran-backed groups stepped up attacks and a fourth U.S. service member was killed in action.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Monday the fourth U.S. service member died after being wounded during Iran's initial attacks in response to U.S. and Israeli strikes across Iran Saturday. A U.S. official not authorized to speak publicly told NPR that the troops who were killed were ground-based forces stationed in Kuwait.

"We expect to take additional losses, and as always, we will work to minimize losses," Gen. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on Monday.

President Donald Trump on Sunday had pledged that the U.S. would "avenge" the deaths of American troops.

In a separate incident, CENTCOM said three U.S. F-15E fighter jets crashed in Kuwait "due to an apparent friendly fire incident" Sunday night.

"During active combat—that included attacks from Iranian aircraft, ballistic missiles, and drones — the U.S. Air Force fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defenses," it said in a statement. CENTCOM said all six members of the crew were "ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition."

It added that Kuwait acknowledged the incident and said that "the cause of the incident is under investigation."

Meanwhile, the Iranian Red Crescent Society, a humanitarian organization, said at least 555 Iranians have been killed since the beginning of U.S. and Israeli attacks on Saturday.

They include Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and members of his family. Iranian officials also said more than 168 schoolgirls were killed in a direct hit on a school.

Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah enters the fray, and Israel retaliates

Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon, said it launched attacks in Israel in revenge for the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as in response to continued Israeli attacks in Lebanon since a ceasefire more than a year ago.

Israel said it intercepted one of the missiles while others fell into open areas, and responded to the attacks with airstrikes.

Lebanon's Health Ministry said Israeli airstrikes killed at least 31 people and wounded at least 149 — most of them in southern Lebanon.

The Lebanese government, facing being drawn into another devastating war, said it planned to arrest those responsible for the rocket attack on Israel.

In the capital Beirut, residents leaving southern Lebanon and Beirut's southern suburbs streamed into shelters set up in schools, which have been closed by the government.

At the Renee Mouawad public school in central Beirut, many of those arriving had been displaced two years ago during fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Families arrived in cars piled high with mattresses and other belongings.

Abu Ali, a taxi driver who did not want to give his full name out of fear of being ostracized in his pro-Hezbollah neighborhood, said he left Dahiya, a Beirut suburb that is a Hezbollah stronghold, with his family at three in the morning after hearing air strikes.

"I spent the morning looking for a school and then I found this," he said. He and his family were last displaced during the war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2024.

"Last time I stayed in the streets," he said. "The schools were all full, and I couldn't pay rent for a house."

"The Israeli enemy is an enemy in the end. But enough — we also want to live," he said.

Israel continued a wave of strikes across the Iranian capital overnight that it said were aimed at security targets.

Casualties rise in Israel

Since Israel launched surprise attacks in Iran this weekend, Iran has been launching missiles at Israeli cities — killing at least 10 people.

Nine of those killed were at a public shelter that was hit by a missile in a city outside Jerusalem on Sunday.

Another missile attack in Tel Aviv killed a caregiver from the Philippines.

Shay Shor, an Israeli in Tel Aviv, said he wants Iranians to be free but is concerned Israel's killing of Supreme Leader Khamenei might not achieve that.

"We killed their leader, but the leadership in Iran is not completely destroyed and within a few months they're just going to come back," Shor says. "Next year is going to be the same thing, same story, same kind of war."

Other updates

Iran-backed militias in Iraq have also entered the fighting. They fired at a U.S. base in Irbil in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and claimed responsibility for a drone attack targeting U.S. forces at Baghdad airport.

A drone strike hit a British air force base on the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus, according to Britain's Defence Ministry. There were no casualties reported.

Iran's military said it shot down a U.S. F-15 fighter jet. It also said it fired 15 cruise missiles at the huge Ali al-Salem U.S. air base in Kuwait and what it called enemy vessels in the Indian Ocean. It did not mention fighter aircraft.

Gulf countries have so far largely left the fighting to U.S. forces stationed on their territory but increasing Iranian attacks are raising the specter of direct involvement by those states.

Saudi Arabia said Monday that it shot down two drones targeting one of its major refineries. It said the debris started what it called a limited fire at the Ras Tanura refinery but no civilian injuries.

The U.S. military said it had hit an Iranian warship, which was sinking Sunday in an Iranian port. Trump said in a video on social media that the U.S. had sunk nine Iranian warships and "largely destroyed" Iran's naval headquarters. The U.S. military's Central Command said it could not confirm those claims.

Global crude oil prices surged and stocks fell as the war with Iran entered its third day. Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had hit three U.S. and U.K. oil tankers in the Gulf. On Saturday Iran said it was closing the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital to the global oil trade.

After Israel, Gulf countries that have long been considered as prosperous havens for Western expatriates have received the brunt of Iranian attacks.

After airport attacks and widespread flight cancellations, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told Sky News Monday that the government was considering arranging evacuation if needed for hundreds of thousands of citizens in the region.

Jawad Rizkallah reported from Beirut.
Copyright 2026 NPR

Congress is set to vote on bipartisan war powers resolutions this week meant to limit President Donald Trump's military operations in Iran.

The dual efforts in the House and Senate face uphill battles to become law, as previous efforts have failed in asserting congressional authority to declare war.

But most Democrats and a handful of Republicans on Capitol Hill still support the effort to curb Trump's use of military power in Iran, after the U.S. and Israel launched attacks against Iran over the weekend that have already claimed the first American casualties.

"The Constitution says we're not supposed to be at war without a vote of Congress," Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., a cosponsor of the Senate resolution, told NPR's Weekend Edition. "This is important. The lives of our troops are at risk. We ought to come back to Washington right away and vote on this."

The war powers resolutions had been scheduled for debate and votes before the surprise attack on Iranian military and political leaders. Now that the war is ongoing, it's unclear how or if any successful war powers resolution would immediately change the reality on the ground.

Kaine urged Congress to return earlier than scheduled to vote on the resolutions, but votes on the measures are still expected mid-week.

Congress would likely need to override a Trump veto in order to pass the war power measures. As it stands, it's unclear if there is enough support for initial passage, not to mention the two-thirds majority needed in both chambers to override a veto.

If made law, the measures would block further U.S. military action in Iran without congressional approval under the 1973 War Powers Resolution — which Congress passed during the Vietnam War as a check on executive war authority.

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a Navy pilot and captain, also supports the vote, saying that "Trump has no plan to avoid escalation into a wider conflict that puts more servicemembers in harm's way."

Trump in a video posted online on Sunday said the U.S. would continue its attacks in the Middle East until objectives are met, without specifying what those objectives are.

Administration officials, including the CIA director, defense secretary, and secretary of state, are expected to brief all lawmakers about the Middle East war efforts on Tuesday, the White House said.

'A disastrous vote for any Democrat'

Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said he gives the House war powers resolution a 40% to 60% chance of advancing out of the House this week.

"It depends if we can keep several Democrats in line," Khanna told NBC News' Meet the Press. "But I believe that this is a disastrous vote for any Democrat — to vote for Donald Trump's war in the Middle East."

He specifically cited Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., who has long opposed the Iran war powers resolutions for fear it would "restrict the flexibility needed" in a military operations. Gottheimer didn't immediately respond to a request for comment about his vote.

Most Republicans are expected to stand by Trump's war with Iran and block the resolutions.

"I suspect you'll see overwhelming support from elected Republicans in the Congress," Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said on CNN Sunday morning.

But Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., one of the sponsors of the resolution in the House, argued that the conflict is not "America First," suggesting some fissures among the GOP; Massie has consistently been one of the few Republicans to vote against some Trump administration priorities.

In the Senate, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., is one of the few Democrats who said he plans to vote against the resolution.

"It's not necessary. Honestly, though, the entire thing, it's really an empty gesture," Fetterman told Fox News Sunday.

These resolution votes comes after the failure of a number of similar attempts to restrict Trump's use of the military without congressional approval.

In June, a Senate vote on Iran war powers failed after the strikes on Tehran's nuclear facilities. And in January, though the Senate narrowly advanced a Venezuela war powers resolution after the capture of former president Nicolas Maduro, the effort ultimately failed to pass.

—NPR's Michele Kelemen contributed to this report.
Copyright 2026 NPR