As Congress returns to session this week amid a new conflict in the Middle East, a crucial question hangs over Washington: Who gets to decide when America’s military can be sent to war?
The Constitution says that only Congress has that power, with limited exceptions. In the four days after hostilities began, the Trump administration has struggled to articulate whether any of those exceptions apply to this situation. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has called this a “war,” undermining the argument that it’s a different kind of military action that doesn’t require congressional authorization. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and others have said the strikes against Iran were in response to an imminent threat against American troops in the region—only to later back down from that claim. President Donald Trump has made overlapping and contradictory claims about the conflict’s aims, and on Tuesday seemed to claim responsibility for initiating Saturday’s attack.
The lack of clarity from the administration makes Congress’ role all the more important here.
Or to put it more pointedly: “I mean, look, America is a republic, not an empire,” which is how Rep. Warren Davidson (R–Ohio) described the situation during an interview with CNN on Monday night.
Davidson, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is one of just two House Republicans to indicate support for a resolution that could limit the Trump administration’s ability to wage war against Iran.
In the interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Monday night, Davidson pointed to the administration’s confused and contradictory claims about why the war began.
“That’s why you want to do this with full congressional authorization, so that you have the debate,” he said.
Davidson added that he had asked for classified briefings that would have given the administration a chance to outline its goals in Iran. He still hopes to see the “intelligence” that persuaded Trump to launch strikes.
“Persuade us,” Davidson said. “I’m open to being persuaded.”
That approach—skepticism accompanied by an interest in getting the best possible assessment of the risks and goals of a war—is exactly the sort of role that Congress is supposed to play. The Trump administration should have made its case for war with Iran to Congress and to the American people before launching any missiles at Iran.
That obviously did not happen, and too few Republicans seem willing to push back now. On Monday, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R–La.) said Trump was acting “well within his authority.”
Davidson and Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.) are the only GOP members of Congress who seem likely to vote for a war powers resolution that could come to the House floor this week, Punchbowl News reports.
In the Senate, a war powers resolution sponsored by Sens. Tim Kaine (D–Va.) and Rand Paul (R–Ky.) may attract more support from the likes of Sens. Susan Collins (R–Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R–Alaska), both of whom voted in support of a similar resolution after the Trump administration struck Venezuela in January.
In a memo sent to House Republicans on Monday, the Trump administration said the conflict with Iran would last “approximately 4-5 weeks.”
There’s no five-week exception to the Constitution that allows presidents to commit American troops to supposedly temporary wars. Davidson is right: America is supposed to be a republic, not an empire. Time for Congress to start acting like it.
