Congress to be Briefed on Iran Strikes Ahead of Vote Over President's War Powers
Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. With all members of Congress across both houses due to be briefed today on the Iran strikes, the Trump administration has presented a shifting new justification for its military actions.
Full Congressional Briefing Scheduled
Secretary of state Marco Rubio, defense secretary Pete Hegseth, and general Dan Caine will brief the full membership of the House and Senate on Tuesday. This briefing is expected to be followed by a possible vote on parallel war powers measures, as lawmakers seek to assert congressional authority over military engagements.
Shifting Justifications and Political Tensions
The briefing comes after House speaker Mike Johnson suggested on Monday that the White House believed Israel was determined to act on its own, leaving the president with a very difficult decision. Johnson made these remarks following a classified briefing at the Capitol, the first for congressional leaders since the start of the conflict. This joint US-Israel military campaign resulted in the death of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Johnson described the attack on Iran as a defensive operation, arguing that Israel was ready to act against Iran, with or without American support. He added, The commander in chief has said this is going to be an operation that is short in duration. We certainly hope that’s true.
Legislative Moves and War Powers Resolutions
Politico reports that the Senate could vote as early as Tuesday on a measure introduced by senators Tim Kaine and Rand Paul to limit Trump’s strikes. This would be followed by a separate House vote on a resolution from Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna. The Democrats' strategy of forcing votes on war power resolutions aims to reclaim Congress's constitutional powers to declare war, although such efforts have so far all failed.
Broader Implications and Developments
The strikes have quickly spiraled into a wider Middle East conflict, resulting in hundreds of deaths, including at least six US military service personnel. In other key developments:
- In his first conference since the joint US-Israel operation, Donald Trump outlined administration objectives: destroying Iran’s missile capabilities, annihilating their navy, preventing nuclear weapons, and stopping Iran from funding terrorist armies.
- At a heated Pentagon press conference, Pete Hegseth initially stated US troops wouldn’t be in Iran but later refused details, emphasizing, This is not Iraq. This is not endless ... Our generation knows better, and so does this president.
- US Central Command confirmed six service members killed and eighteen seriously wounded in the conflict.
- The US state department urged Americans to depart now from over a dozen Middle Eastern countries, leading to stranded travelers as airspace closures affected major airports like Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
- Kuwait air defences mistakenly shot down three US F-15 fighter jets; all six crew members ejected safely and are in stable condition.
- Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed on Fox News that Iran’s ballistic missile and atomic bomb programs would have been immune within months without the strikes.
As Congress prepares for this critical briefing and potential votes, the situation underscores deepening geopolitical risks and the ongoing debate over executive war powers in the United States.
