Jackie Northam is NPR's International Affairs Correspondent. She is a veteran journalist who has spent three decades reporting on conflict, geopolitics, and life across the globe - from the mountains of Afghanistan and the desert sands of Saudi Arabia, to the gritty prison camp at Guantanamo Bay and the pristine beauty of the Arctic.
The vote marked a rare bipartisan rebuke of the war, but is mostly symbolic. Democrats have been unable to pass a war powers resolution in the Senate, and even if they could it would likely be vetoed.
The district faces looming challenges in the years ahead, including a deficit this year, a major salary increase next year, and changes to the state funding formula.