Trump Administration Faces Deadline for Congressional Approval on Iran Military Action

The Trump administration faces a deadline today to seek Congressional approval for its military action in Iran. It does not appear to be seeking that approval.

According to the War Powers Resolution of 1973, Congress must declare war or authorize the use of force within 60 days. If the president requests an extension, Congress has 90 days to act. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted that the current ceasefire doesn't count toward the 60 days. The administration plans to continue confronting Iran through the ducling blockades of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranians have proposed reopening the Strait and negotiating nuclear restrictions later. President Trump convened his national security team to review the proposal, but he remains adamant that a nuclear deal must be included, NPR's Franco Ordoñez tells Up First.

Alexander Gray, the former Chief of Staff at the National Security Council during the first Trump administration, says the blockade gives the U.S. "maximum leverage." Gray says the blockade is all about which side blinks or gives in first. "I think the Iranians are going to blink because they're losing 400 plus million dollars a day to the U.S. Navy's blockade," Gray says.

The problem is the Trump administration has been arguing that if they just put enough military and economic pressure on Iran, Tehran would capitulate, but that hasn't happened, Ordoñez says.