The US House of Representatives voted for a third time on Tuesday to invoke war powers and halt the seven-month-old conflict with Iran, as a new nonpartisan budget assessment confirmed the war has already cost more than $38 billion and is straining American military capacity well beyond the Middle East.

The resolution passed 220–204, with seven Republicans joining all Democrats in favour — up from four in previous votes. The lawmakers included Representatives Zachary Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa, states with competitive House races, as well as retiring Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina, and Republicans Tom Barrett, Warren Davidson, Brian Fitzpatrick, and Thomas Massie. Despite the growing bipartisan unease, the measure faces long odds: none of the three House resolutions, nor a Senate version briefly passed before Republican senators reversed course under White House pressure, has reached President Donald Trump's desk, where a veto would almost certainly follow.

The vote came on the same day the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog, released a detailed cost assessment of Operation Epic Fury — the formal name for the US military campaign against Iran, which began on 28 February. The CBO estimated that by 1 August the Department of Defense had spent over $38 billion, the largest single component being $21.7 billion to replace munitions. The agency warned that between half and two-thirds of US missile-defence interceptors have been used since June 2025, leaving stocks depleted for several years. The Pentagon declined to cooperate with the CBO's assessment, a break from standard practice, forcing analysts to rely on government databases and public reports. A Pentagon inspector general report released Monday separately flagged