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With U.S. President Donald Trump’s unpopular war against Iran showing little sign of ending, his Republican backers on Capitol Hill are facing a fresh dilemma on what to do if he insists on flouting a 1973 law mandating that unauthorized military operations end if they have gone past 60 days.

It’s too early to tell what most Republican lawmakers will do if the clock runs out on May 1 and the war against Iran is still ongoing. Some, such as Sen. James Lankford, have argued that it’s too far out to speculate, while others, such as Sen. Susan Collins, have indicated that they would join with Democrats to vote in favor of resolutions ordering an end to the fighting. But it would take just a few Republicans in both the House and the Senate crossing the aisle for resolutions ordering an end to the war to pass and be sent to Trump’s desk.

With U.S. President Donald Trump’s unpopular war against Iran showing little sign of ending, his Republican backers on Capitol Hill are facing a fresh dilemma on what to do if he insists on flouting a 1973 law mandating that unauthorized military operations end if they have gone past 60 days.

It’s too early to tell what most Republican lawmakers will do if the clock runs out on May 1 and the war against Iran is still ongoing. Some, such as Sen. James Lankford, have argued that it’s too far out to speculate, while others, such as Sen. Susan Collins, have indicated that they would join with Democrats to vote in favor of resolutions ordering an end to the fighting. But it would take just a few Republicans in both the House and the Senate crossing the aisle for resolutions ordering an end to the war to pass and be sent to Trump’s desk.

“I’ve been very clear from the beginning that I consider the 60-day trigger in the War Powers Act to be [severe] and that the president needs to request authorization from Congress to continue hostilities beyond that point, absent some dramatic change or development,” said Collins, who leads the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, which plays a major role in determining U.S. military spending levels.

The legal clock established by the War Powers Resolution runs out at the beginning of next month. As........

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