GOP war powers resolution argument triggers a furor between Trump, lawmakers over Iran

The partisan battle over authorizing the Iran War has shifted to one of semantics, as the sides haggle over a contentious deadline created by a Vietnam-era law.

On Friday, the conflict hit the 60-day mark — a critical marker under the 1973 War Powers Act — and Democrats are using the milestone to fuel their efforts to force President Trump to end the military campaign against Tehran immediately, unless Congress explicitly approves it.

Trump and his Republican allies are pushing back, arguing that the conflict never rose to the level of a “war,” precluding the need for congressional consent. They also maintain that, even if it did meet that distinction, the current ceasefire has effectively ended the shooting part of the war long before the 60-day threshold was met.

The clash is renewing the age-old debate over the separation of powers when it comes to the use of military force. And it promises to continue for many weeks to come, as Democrats are vowing a strategy of forcing vote after vote on war powers resolutions, if only to put Republicans on record supporting a conflict that’s grown wildly unpopular with voters. 

“The Founders of our country gave Congress, as representatives of the American people, the ultimate decision of when we go to war,” said Rep. John Garamendi (D-Calif.). “Trump has no plan to sustain the current conflict, no plan to transition the current Iranian government toward democracy, and no plan to de-escalate or contain the conflict from spreading throughout the region.”

Garamendi is among a growing list of liberal Democrats who have introduced war powers resolutions in the days leading up to the 60-day threshold. The campaign, being led by the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), is designed to stagger the resolutions so they “ripen” — that is, mature to the point of becoming eligible for a floor vote — on a rolling basis. The tactic will allow Democrats to force a barrage of votes on the war, interspersed at regular intervals as Congress inches closer to the midterm elections. 

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