DEMOCRATS INTRODUCE NEW WAR POWERS RESOLUTION

President Has Thirty Days to Present Case for Extended Aggression to Congress, American People

No Ground Troops Without Explicit Congressional Approval 

Congress, Relevant Committees Must be Regularly Briefed During Thirty-Day Period

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, a group of Democrats, including U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), Congressman Greg Landsman (OH-1), Congressman Jim Costa (CA-21), Congressman Jared Golden (ME-2), and Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28), and Congressman Jimmy Panetta (CA-20) announced the introduction of a new War Powers Resolution to uphold Congress’s constitutional authority, while ensuring the United States can continue to defend our service members, embassies, and allies from Iranian aggression. Under the banner “Death to America,” the Iranian regime remains the leading state sponsor of terror. Over the decades, Iran’s ballistic missile, nuclear, and terror proxy programs have led to the death of thousands of Americans, service members, and allies. Their government recently massacred reportedly tens of thousands of their own people for seeking freedom and democracy.

The new War Powers Resolution:

• Directs the President to end U.S. military action against the Islamic Republic of Iran within thirty days unless Congress provides authorization for the use of military force or a formal declaration of war. The thirty-day clock commenced the day operations began on February 28, 2026. The President is expected to use this time to present his case for U.S. military action to Congress and the American people, without risking the safety and security of service members.

• Precludes the President from deploying ground troops without explicit congressional authority, except for cases of search and rescue missions and intelligence activities.

• Explicitly preserves the United States’ ability to defend itself, our armed forces, embassies, and allied nations from imminent attack, and protect ongoing intelligence collection and intelligence sharing.

• Mandates that the President and administration regularly brief Members of Congress and the relevant committees on the goals and objectives of major military action as military operations continue.

Find text of the resolution here.

There is a concern that the Khanna–Massie War Powers Resolution currently requires the immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces, even while Iran is actively targeting American troops, assets, embassies, and our allies across the region. It is vital that we allow for a safe transition, that protects our service members, embassies, and allies, not a potentially precarious withdrawal. In recent days, Iran has launched ongoing offensive attacks against American troops, diplomats, and partners in the UAE, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Cyprus, and Oman. Iran has also launched drone and ballistic missile attacks against civilian targets, including hospitals, hotels, and airports.

This new legislation provides a clear thirty-day window consistent with the War Powers Act of 1973, maintains clear authority on self-defense, and avoids signaling retreat to our adversaries. This is not about politics; it is about commonsense action to defend our troops and allies while standing by Congress Article II constitutional responsibilities.

An open-ended commitment by the Administration and the recent implication from the Secretary of Defense that ground troops may be engaged are both unacceptable. It is equally unwise to act in a precipitous way and endanger America’s security and put our service members in additional harm’s way. A thirty-day period for Congress to be fully briefed, for intelligence committees to assess the status of the conflict, and for the American people to hear directly from the Administration on the goals and end game of this action will allow Congress to act in a timely and appropriate way to do what we all want: combat global terror that threatens us all, ensure the safety of our troops and allies, and live up to our constitutional duties.

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