The Senate has refrained from rebuking the Trump administration for its military conflict with Iran after a late-night vote on Wednesday concluded with a 50-47-1 result. This outcome reflects a shift in some Republican swing votes from the earlier 50-48 tally, as senators expressed concern that a second rebuke could potentially disrupt ongoing peace negotiations with Iran.

GOP Position Changes

Sen. Rand Paul, who has previously sided with Democrats on similar resolutions, announced his decision to vote 'present' instead of 'no' shortly before the vote. Paul stated that while his opinion on the debate over war and executive power has not changed, he chose to avoid potential harm to the negotiations. Following an argument with President Donald Trump, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) attended a White House briefing on the status of the conflict with Vice President J.D. Vance and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. Cassidy later described the briefing as "thorough" and ultimately voted against the resolution.

White House Response

Trump praised the Senate's decision in a Truth Social post, thanking Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio). "This vote puts Iran on notice!" wrote Trump. The shift in Senate GOP stance comes after a heated closed-door meeting between Trump and Cassidy, where the Louisiana senator had questioned the effectiveness of the financial incentives offered to Iran and expressed doubts about the war's progress.

Legislative Context

Earlier this week, the Senate passed the Iran War Powers resolution with a 50-48 vote, with four GOP lawmakers cross-voting. Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) hailed the win and criticized Trump for pursuing the war without consulting Congress. The resolution sought to reassert Congress’s constitutional authority over war powers by requiring Trump to withdraw U.S. forces from hostilities involving Iran unless Congress explicitly approved military action.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday defended the administration’s aggressive trade policies, unveiling a comprehensive “3 through 3” economic blueprint designed to sustain high GDP growth while neutralizing “structural inflation.” Deconstructing critics’ claims that import penalties harm American consumers, Bessent argued that persistent price pressures are rooted in domestic services rather than the government’s newly revived global trade barriers.

The Tariff Reboot And Service-Sector Inflation

Speaking in a wide-ranging interview on CNBC, Bessent dismissed warnings that defensive economic measures spike consumer costs. “People like to say that it’s added to inflation, but when you look at the data, the structural inflation has been in services,” Bessent clarified, noting that service-sector dynamics are entirely insulated from global import markets.

To protect American manufacturing and strengthen national security, the Treasury Secretary confirmed the administration has actively “rebooted the tariff program.” The current framework utilizes Section 122 tariffs to establish a temporary 10% global baseline while the administration awaits the completion of deeper Section 301 supply chain studies. If successful, Bessent stated, “the tariff rates are going to go back to exactly where they were.” He noted that using this economic leverage has already successfully pressured global allies to lower non-tariff barriers and rewrite trade rules in America’s favor.

Inside The ‘3 Through 3’ Economic Blueprint

To anchor long-term fiscal health, Bessent outlined his signature “3 through 3” economic framework, a triple-pronged strategy to foster macroeconomic growth without triggering localized inflation. The plan relies on maintaining a robust 3% GDP growth rate, expanding energy production by an equivalent of 3 million more barrels of oil and gas per day, and slashing the national deficit to 3% of GDP. Bessent pointed out that the deficit has dropped significantly under recent spending contractions.

By lowering the deficit-to-GDP ratio to the 3% target by the end of the presidential term, the U.S. will successfully begin “paying down overall debt as a percent of the economy,” paving the way for a highly productive, non-inflationary future.

Market Performance In 2026

The S&P 500 index has advanced 7.29% year-to-date. Similarly, the Nasdaq Composite index was up 9.64%, and the Dow Jones gained 7.16% YTD. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, closed lower on Wednesday. The SPY ended down 0.046% at $733.24, while the QQQ declined by 0.42% to $710.62. Meanwhile, the Dow tracker, State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA), closed 0.37% higher on Wednesday.