CONGRESS/FOREIGN POLICY/SAUDI ARABIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Congress inched closer to a major foreign-policy rebuke of President Donald Trump on Wednesday [2-6-19] when the House Foreign Affairs Committee advanced a bill to cut off U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen’s bloody civil war. In a party-line vote, the panel’s Democrats sent a War Powers resolution to the House floor, where it is likely to pass overwhelmingly in the coming days. A companion effort in the Senate will follow, but its prospects are less certain as Trump administration officials are ramping up efforts to discourage Republican defections…The backdrop of the highly anticipated vote remains the Trump administration’s close relationship with Saudi Arabia — in particular, bipartisan frustration with its continued backing of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen’s civil war, which is fighting Iran-backed Houthi rebels in what has devolved into a humanitarian crisis. With the bill expected to easily pass in the Democratic-controlled House later this month, all eyes will soon be on Republican senators, who could soon force Trump to issue the first veto of his presidency. If both chambers approve the legislation, it would be the first time in history that both chambers passed a War Powers resolution.”
–Andrew Desiderio, “House Dems defy Trump on Yemen and Saudi Arabia,” Poltiico, February 6, 2019 5:03 pm