All of the posturing is futile. Do so many Americans not know their own law?
The tyrant Trump must beg the US Congress for permission to continue his insane attacks on Iran by next Friday. That is the law.
- Many in Congress face midterms.
- They know Trump's war is unpopular among their voters.
- To save themselves from political ruin, they will rein in the the tyrant Trump.
But now a second deadline is approaching: A military operation is only permitted to last 60 days without the approval of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the two bodies that make up Congress. That deadline expires on May 1.
If a solution to the war has not been negotiated between Washington and Tehran by then, the president will have to take further steps to legitimize his military operation against Iran.
In accordance with the law, the president could extend the original 60-day period once, by an additional 30 days to allow for an orderly withdrawal of troops.
As a rule, presidents have sought public support and, in particular, congressional approval before major military actions. Trump's decision not to do so in the case of the US-Israeli strikes on Iran has created a vulnerability that opposition Democrats in Congress have repeatedly exploited.
Since early March, there have been a total of five votes in both chambers on resolutions intended to constrain Trump's actions. Given the Republican majorities in both chambers, the resolutions failed, although only narrowly.
"Beyond passing resolutions, Congress has only limited means to actively end the war," said Mildner. "An effective tool would be to cut off funding.
Several Republicans have already indicated they may reconsider how they vote. John Curtis, a Republican senator from Utah, made his position clear : "I will not support ongoing military action beyond a 60-day window without congressional approval."
It is not particularly likely that such approval will be forthcoming.
For many Republicans, it is politically much easier to vote against resolutions to end the war than to actively authorize its continuation. The latter entails clear co-responsibility for the duration, costs and risks of the operation — and therefore considerable political vulnerability, especially with an eye on the midterms.