A Democratic senator has introduced legislation to prevent Donald Trump from using military force against Iran without Congress’s authorization on Monday.
Tim Kaine of Virginia has tried for years to wrest back Congress’s authority to declare war from the White House.
During Trump’s first term, in 2020, Mr Kaine introduced a similar resolution to rein in Trump’s ability to wage war against Iran. That measure passed both the Senate and House of Representatives, winning some Republican support, but did not garner enough votes to survive the Republican president’s veto.
Mr Kaine said his latest war powers resolution underscores that the US Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the sole power to declare war and requires that any hostility with Iran be explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for the use of military force.
“It is not in our national security interest to get into a war with Iran unless that war is absolutely necessary to defend the United States. I am deeply concerned that the recent escalation of hostilities between Israel and Iran could quickly pull the United States into another endless conflict,” Mr Kaine said in a statement.
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