Donald Trump announced on Friday, May 1 that he no longer needed Congress’ approval for war with Iran, as the 60-day limit set by law for obtaining parliamentary authorization for the start of hostilities had expired. Exactly two months after the start of the Israeli-American offensive against Tehran, the US president stated in a letter to Congress that the hostilities were “over”, thus exempting him from seeking legislative approval. “On April 7, 2026, I ordered a two-week ceasefire. The ceasefire has since been extended. There has been no exchange of fire between US and Iranian forces since April 7, 2026. The hostilities that began on February 28, 2026 are over,” he wrote.
According to the Constitution, only Congress has the power to “declare” war. However, a law passed in 1973 allows the president to launch a limited military intervention in response to an emergency situation created by an attack on the United States. The same law requires the president, if committing troops for more than 60 days, to obtain authorization from the legislative branch, different from a declaration of war.
The conflict with Iran began on February 28, but the official notification from the White House to Congress regarding the start of hostilities only came two days later. Therefore, May 1 represented the 60-day deadline to obtain parliamentary authorization. Since the conflict began, Democrats have repeatedly tried to pass a bill to limit Donald Trump’s military powers against Iran, without success. “I don’t think what they’re asking for is constitutional. Those who are asking for it are not patriots,” the US president said in an exchange with journalists on Friday morning. “No one has ever asked for it before, so why should we do it?”
Democratic opposition has challenged Trump’s stance on the supposed end of hostilities. “President Trump’s declaration that the war in Iran is over does not reflect the reality of tens of thousands of American soldiers in danger in the region, perpetual threats from the administration to escalate hostilities, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and soaring prices in the United States,” denounced Jeanne Shaheen, a member of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.
“President Trump started this war without a strategy and without legal authorization, and today’s announcement changes nothing,” she said in a statement.
Some Republican lawmakers warned that after the 60-day deadline, they could start demanding executive branch authorization from Congress. However, without enough conservative support, Democrats do not have real options to ensure the government meets the deadline.
Original article published on BFMTV.com
/2026/05/01/69f50a150326a369233303.jpg "Strait of Hormuz: The situation is terribly deteriorating for the 20,000 stranded sailors, according to the Merchant Navy Officers Federation.")
