American deputies approve a text ordering the end of the war against Iran, Donald Trump castigates an “unpatriotic” vote

“Congress directs the President to withdraw the armed forces of the United States from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran.” The American House of Representatives adopted, on Wednesday June 3, a text ordering the withdrawal of American troops in the war against Iran, a snub for Donald Trump who engaged the United States in this conflict on February 28. The resolution – adopted with the votes of four Republican deputies – however has a primarily symbolic significance, due to the American president’s right of veto.

Donald Trump criticized the adoption of the text on Thursday, suggesting that this initiative “unpatriotic” disrupted negotiations with Tehran. “Who would do something so unpatriotic? They know where the negotiations stand”he wrote on his Truth Social network.

The elected Democrats of the Foreign Affairs Committee welcomed “a strong and unequivocal message to Donald Trump from the Americans”. “It is time to end this illegal and deeply unpopular war”they added after the vote. A similar resolution passed a key procedural step in the Senate at the end of May and adoption in the upper house could take place as early as this week. If adopted by both houses of Congress after the parliamentary shuttle, Donald Trump would undoubtedly veto the text to prevent the promulgation of the text.

To circumvent this presidential veto, a new vote in both chambers would then have to be organized and a two-thirds majority would be necessary, a virtual impossibility given the current composition of the House and the Senate. Under the US Constitution, only Congress has the authority to declare war. With these resolutions, the Democrats wish to reaffirm the authority of the legislative power on this issue in the face of the executive power represented by Donald Trump. While the law allows the president to initiate hostilities to respond to an imminent threat, it requires that he obtain authorization from Congress within 60 days.