US strikes Iran for second day: Is it a violation of war powers resolution?

The determination by the United States to transportation retired strikes connected Iran has not lone drawn retaliatory attacks from Tehran but besides brought disapproval from a Democratic lawmaker who has accused Republican President Donald Trump of violating a war powers resolution passed by Congress.

Congress passed the solution connected Tuesday, stipulating that the president indispensable either halt his subject run against Iran oregon question legislature support earlier immoderate further enactment is taken.

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Representative Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, condemned the latest US attacks connected Iran, calling them “a blatant violation” of the legislature solution and threatening to instrumentality Trump to tribunal implicit it.

The US military’s Central Command connected Saturday deed Iranian subject sites aft accusing Tehran of targeting a vessel passing done the Strait of Hormuz, which has go the absorption of a geopolitical showdown betwixt the 2 countries.

In response, Tehran deed US subject sites successful Bahrain and Kuwait connected Sunday arsenic the 2 sides exchanged strikes for a 2nd clip implicit the weekend, threatening to unravel a fragile Iran-US memorandum of knowing (MoU) signed connected June 15.

Meanwhile, Israel has continued to onslaught Lebanon contempt a model deal signed connected Friday and the MoU calling for an extremity to warfare connected each fronts, including successful Lebanon.

So is Trump violating the law, and tin Congress halt him from attacking Iran?

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, left, and President Donald Trump get for a luncheon astatine the Capitol connected June 24, 2026, astatine which Trump berated Senate Republicans for passing the warfare powers solution [Cliff Owen/AP]

What is the 1973 War Powers Resolution?

The War Powers Resolution of 1973 requires the president to notify Congress wrong 48 hours of committing equipped forces to hostilities and bars sustained subject enactment aft 60 days, pending legislature approval.

The Senate connected Tuesday was voting for the 10th clip to effort to rein successful the warfare that the US and Israel launched against Tehran connected February 28.

The Senate passed the solution successful a 50-48 ballot contempt Trump’s Republican Party enjoying a slim bulk successful some it and the House of Representatives. Four Republicans voted successful favour of the resolution, which is nonbinding. 

The House besides passed the measurement connected June 3 by a ballot of 215 to 208.

Addressing the Senate earlier the vote, apical Democrat Chuck Schumer said: “For years, Trump promised to enactment maximum unit connected Iran, but helium ended up delivering maximum confusion, maximum chaos, maximum outgo to the American radical with his disastrous war.”

“The American radical person paid the terms for Trump’s historical blunder successful Iran. It’ll spell down successful the past books arsenic 1 of the worst overseas argumentation forays America has ever made,” helium added.

The warfare against Iran has been unpopular successful the US, wherever little than a 4th of radical consciousness the warfare has been worthy the cost, arsenic suggested by an Ipsos/Reuters poll.

The ballot connected the solution was held arsenic the Pentagon is besides seeking an $80bn boost from Congress, mostly for the Iran warfare arsenic it backfills munitions and stockpiles depleted during the conflict.

A representation of Iran with the images of immoderate of those killed successful the US-Israel warfare connected the state is seen on a road successful Tehran connected June 17, 2026 [Atta Kenare/AFP]

How was the solution passed, and what does it say?

Four Republicans crossed enactment lines to ballot successful favour of the Senate resolution: Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and Rand Paul of Kentucky. Two different Republicans, Mitch McConnell and Dave McCormick, did not ballot connected the resolution.

The solution “directs the President to region United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran”.

Only if “explicitly authorized by a declaration of warfare oregon a circumstantial legislature authorisation” would Trump beryllium allowed to usage further subject unit against Iran, it says.

The resolution, however, does let for a constricted subject beingness to stay successful the Middle East to forestall immoderate “imminent attack” against the US oregon its allies.

Trump called the ballot “poorly timed and meaningless” and said it “provided assistance and comfort” to Iran.

He berated the Republicans who voted for the solution astatine a luncheon astatine the Capitol connected Wednesday. That night, Cassidy changed his ballot and Paul voted contiguous arsenic the Senate rejected a astir identical warfare powers solution 47-50 successful an effort to appease the president.

Does Trump attraction astir it?

On the look of it, no.

The solution is mostly symbolic due to the fact that it does not transportation the afloat unit of law, adjacent if it mirrors the wariness among lawmakers successful the House and Senate implicit some the warfare and the MoU Trump struck with Iran to extremity it.

Under the US Constitution, Congress has the sole powerfulness to state war, but presidents earlier Trump person gone to warfare without legislature authorisation.

Trump has pointed to those precedents and told the Axios Show past week that helium has not learned immoderate “lesson” astir the limits of his enforcement powers during the Iran war. “There are nary limits,” helium said.

The White House besides brushed disconnected the Senate’s transition of the resolution, noting that it has “no significance” and saying it was driven by “Republican absences”.

“The solution directs the President to region US Armed Forces from hostilities against Iran. Yet determination are nary hostilities from which to region US forces, arsenic hostilities terminated with the ceasefire connected April 7th,” a White House authoritative said successful a connection connected Tuesday.

However, connected Friday, Trump directed US forces to onslaught Iran successful what his medication says was a effect to Tehran attacking a vas successful the Strait of Hormuz.

Tehran has insisted that vessels usage lone Iran-approved routes to guarantee harmless passage. It has opposed an alternate way person to the Omani seashore that has been recommended by the US.

Iran said the renewed US attacks interruption the MoU signed by Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Thousands of Trump critics enactment successful a ‘No Kings’ protestation connected March 28, 2026, successful New York City [Spencer Platt/AFP]

Is Trump violating the law?

Before this, nary warfare powers solution had antecedently passed some chambers of Congress successful Washington, DC. A 1983 Supreme Court ruling noted that specified a measurement indispensable beryllium submitted for ‌a president’s ⁠signature to person ineligible effect.

US law adept Bruce Fein told Al Jazeera connected Wednesday that Trump would “ignore the ballot connected the bogus phantasy of unconstitutionality”.

“The courts volition refrain from intervening nether the governmental questions doctrine,” Fein said. “But Congress could extremity the warfare by terminating backing asked [for] by Trump. What helium is doing is intelligibly an impeachable offence, which volition haunt Trump if November hands Congress to Democrats.”

Unlike erstwhile administrations, Trump has not passed authorisations for the usage of subject unit (AUMFs), which authorise the usage of subject unit without a declaration of war. For example, successful the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks successful 2001, Congress passed an AUMF that gave then-President George W Bush wide powers to behaviour what would go the alleged “war connected terror”.

The constitutionality of the 1973 War Powers Resolution, however, volition apt beryllium settled successful the courts, arsenic threatened by Democrat Khanna.

“Trump indispensable halt this warfare present – oregon we volition instrumentality him to tribunal to compel him to bash so,” Khanna wrote connected X precocious connected Saturday aft the US struck Iranian targets for the 2nd time successful a row.

Is the portion returning to full-blown fighting?

Hassan Ahmadian, an subordinate prof astatine the University of Tehran, told Al Jazeera that the attacks could acceptable disconnected a domino effect of strikes betwixt the US and Iran.

“I deliberation we’re up for escalation because, obviously, the Iranians volition retaliate,” helium said.

Ahmadian argued that Article 5 of the MoU says “Iran volition marque the arrangements for the harmless transition of commercialized ships” for 60 days, and afterwards, it volition beryllium “Iran and Oman that volition marque the arrangements”.

“And now, the United States wants antithetic arrangements successful spot arsenic opposed to the MoU that it itself signed,” helium said. “What we spot is the United States trying to find its mode retired of this memorandum of knowing portion obliging Iran to its extremity of the terms.”

The US has done the aforesaid successful Lebanon by brokering a caller model agreement, helium said, adding that the Iranians “will not fto spell of this”.