Rep. Thomas Massie told reporters Monday evening he won’t advance a measure to block U.S. involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict if an apparent cease-fire announced by President Donald Trump holds.
“I talked to the speaker on the floor just now and told him we wouldn’t push it if the cease-fire holds, so it’s really in their court,” the Kentucky Republican told reporters, adding that he would “wait and see” before making a final call.
Speaker Mike Johnson separately told reporters the measure is “‘moot” in light of the cease-fire news and has no chance of passing regardless. He called on Massie “to do right by the country and do right by the Republican team here” in dropping the measure, adding that “he plays almost every day on the other team, and that’s a deep regret.”
Massie is the sole Republican sponsor of the bill, which has picked up substantial support from Democrats. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), the lead Democrat on the bill, wrote on X that he and Massie were “not looking to score political points, but to reassert the role of Congress & prevent wars of choice with disastrous consequences.”
Khanna said Monday that “we need to make sure we don’t get into a war” but that he wanted to speak to Massie before commenting further.
Massie was targeted by Trump on social media following Saturday night’s U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities for his criticism of U.S. involvement in the conflict, and the president has threatened to support a primary challenge. He’s largely shrugged off the threat.
“I’ve raised $120,000 in the last 24 hours,” Massie said. “And ultimately, the president hates to lose. And I think what he’ll do probably is that time draws near, he’ll do some polling and see that he’s going to lose and maybe not get in the race.”
Meredith Lee Hill and Calen Razor contributed to this report.
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