Deadline approaches for Trump to secure Congressional approval for Iran war |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — US President Donald Trump faces a deadline on Friday to end the Iran war or make the case to the US Congress for extending it, but the date is most likely to pass without altering the course of a conflict that has lapsed into a standoff over shipping routes.
Ending the war appears highly unlikely.
Instead, analysts and US congressional aides said they expect Trump to either notify Congress that he plans a 30-day extension or disregard the deadline, with his administration arguing that a current ceasefire with Tehran marked an end to the conflict.
Like most policies in a bitterly divided US Congress, war powers have become deeply partisan, with opposition Democrats call for Congress to reassert its constitutional right to declare war and Republicans accusing Democrats of trying to use War Powers law to weaken Trump.
Democrats have tried repeatedly since the war began on February 28 to pass resolutions seeking to force Trump to withdraw US forces or obtain congressional authorization.
But Trump’s Republicans, who hold slim majorities in the US Senate and House of Representatives, have voted them down almost unanimously.
Under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, the US president can wage military action for only 60 days before ending it, coming to Congress for authorization or seeking a 30-day extension due to “unavoidable military necessity regarding the safety of United States Armed Forces.”
The Iran conflict began on February 28, when Israel and the United States began airstrikes on Iran. Trump formally notified Congress of the conflict 48 hours later, as the law requires, starting the 60-day deadline clock that ends May 1.
Trump is scheduled to receive a briefing on Thursday on plans for fresh military strikes on Iran to compel it to negotiate an........