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

The decision by the United States to carry out strikes on Iran has not only drawn retaliatory attacks from Tehran but also brought criticism from a Democratic lawmaker who has accused Republican President Donald Trump of violating a war powers resolution passed by Congress. Congress passed the resolution on Tuesday, stipulating that the president must either halt his military campaign against Iran or seek congressional approval before any further action is taken.

Representative Ro Khanna, a Democrat from California, condemned the latest US attacks on Iran, calling them “a blatant violation” of the congressional resolution and threatening to take Trump to court over it. The US military’s Central Command on Saturday hit Iranian military sites after accusing Tehran of targeting a ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz, which has become the focus of a geopolitical showdown between the two countries.

In response, Tehran hit US military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait on Sunday as the two sides exchanged strikes for a second time over the weekend, threatening to unravel a fragile Iran-US memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed on June 15. Meanwhile, Israel has continued to strike Lebanon despite a framework deal signed on Friday and the MoU calling for an end to war on all fronts, including in Lebanon.

So is Trump violating the law, and can Congress stop him from attacking Iran?

What is the 1973 War Powers Resolution? The War Powers Resolution of 1973 requires the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of committing armed forces to hostilities and bars sustained military action after 60 days, pending congressional approval. The Senate on Tuesday was voting for the 10th time to try to rein in the war that the US and Israel launched against Tehran on February 28. The Senate passed the resolution in a 50-48 vote despite Trump’s Republican Party enjoying a slim majority.