Iran-Israel War: Donald Trump to face action under War Powers Act after US strikes on Iran? Here's what lawmakers said

US President Donald Trump's decision to order military strikes on three key nuclear sites in Iran has raised questions from several lawmakers on both sides of the aisle whether he acted within his authority, reported USA Today. 

According to the report, several lawmakers,  including staunch conservatives and prominent progressives, are vieweing the act as a "grave violation of the Constitution". "The President’s disastrous decision to bomb Iran without authorization is a grave violation of the Constitution and Congressional War Powers," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, posted on social media platform X.

What is War Powers Act?

According to the US Constitution, the Congress is in power to declare war. Moreover, the War Powers Resolution 1973 requires the president to inform Congress within 48 hours of strikes. The law also limits the deployment of armed forces beyond 90 days, in case a formal war is not declared. 

Asked at a media interaction whether the Congress was made aware of the military action, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that they were notified after the planes were out. "But we complied with the notification requirements of the War Powers Act", he said. 

Massie and Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California acknowledged that stopping Iran from having a nuclear bomb is top priority. However, he called Trump's strikes "unconstitutional". "Stopping Iran from having a nuclear bomb is a top priority, but dragging the U.S. into another Middle East war is not the solution," Khanna said in a statement.

"Trump’s strikes are unconstitutional and put Americans, especially our troops, at risk", he added.