As the war in Iran escalates, as the casualties mount, and as the risk of economic disruption rises, President Trump and Congress must become more serious about its prosecution. President Trump should make every effort to win congressional approval to better guarantee its continuing support should the war last longer than currently anticipated, and his supporters in Congress and among the general public must recognize that we really are at war. If President Trump fails to win congressional approval, he may have to end hostilities before achieving whatever goals he’s seeking, and he may be tagged with the sole blame for whatever consequences come from the war.
Two weeks ago, I got considerable blowback when I wrote a column in which I said I hope we win the war in Iran, but President Trump should secure congressional approval for the war. Many said presidents have the right to launch wars without anyone’s approval—a truly scary thought—while failing to mention the need for congressional support for continuing a war once it’s been started (I’m certain that was a mere oversight).
Actually, it’s perfectly true that those who wrote the Constitution believed that a President could act unilaterally and without congressional approval to repel a foreign invasion of the United States. And we’re resigned to the fact that there’s no practical way to prevent a president from launching a war on his own. Nonetheless, the War Powers Resolution Act says the President must get congressional approval to conduct combat operations within 60 days of launching them; absent such approval, he must cease hostilities and withdraw the troops (he may get an additional 30 days to do so to provide for the safety of the troops). And the Act further states that the President must cease hostilities immediately if Congress orders him to do so.
Constitutional scholars are not certain that the Supreme Court would uphold the Act if a test case were to be brought. But even if the Act were to be declared unconstitutional, Congress could still cut off spending for the war whenever it wanted, and impeach and remove the President for conducting it. So sooner or later, President Trump, unless he wraps up the fighting in a big hurry, will have to get congressional approval anyway, no matter what his supporters say to the contrary. Otherwise, he may be denied the resources to achieve his goals, whatever they may be.
To win such approval, President Trump should express more clearly exactly what he wants to attain through war: Regime change? Degradation of Iranian military might? Permanent destruction of its nuclear facilities and bomb-making capacity? Each of these is a worthy goal. But all too often, President Trump has seemed to flit from one goal to another without definitively settling on anything. However clear his supporters think he has been, 62% of the general public, according to a recent Quinnipiac poll cited by the Journal Editorial Report, believe he has not been clear enough, while only 35% say otherwise. And by 53% to 40%, the public disapproves of his handling of the war (this is consistent with an average of polls, which put public support for the war at 40% and public opposition at 50%). If President Trump can explain to the public his goals with greater clarity, he may win more public support, which he can use to secure congressional support, too. But if public support continues to decline, Congress may be more emboldened to withhold its support and cut off necessary resources.
And members of Congress—especially President Trump’s supporters—must begin to admit that we really are in a shooting war, assuming, that is, that our air and missile strikes against another nation, and its countermeasures to kill our troops, actually constitute a war. Not everyone among the President’s supporters is willing to do so. Rather than admitting that we’re at war and defending the war on its merits, they’re actually denying we’re at war at all (some of my critics in The Flash also deny we’re at war too). The Wall Street Journal has compiled examples of Republican lawmakers trying to deny we’re at war and hence Congress need not take a stand on it. For example:
- Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri says we are not at war “in the constitutional sense” since we do not yet have ground troops in combat. (President Trump has raised the possibility of sending in ground troops; will those who currently say we’re not at war change their tune?)
- Republican Representative Andy Fine of Florida says we’re not at war because Congress has not yet passed a formal war declaration. (By his reasoning, neither the Korean nor the Vietnam War was a war, which would be news to those who fought there as well as to the families of those killed in action.)
- House Speaker Mike Johnson has said that what’s happening in Iran isn’t a war but simply an “operation.” (How much consolation will that be to the families of those killed in action?)
So why aren’t President Trump’s supporters in Congress rushing to defend the war and express their support? Do they think that by denying that we’re at war, they can postpone the day when they must decide on whether to continue it or pull the plug? Do they hope that the war will end quickly enough so that they can avoid making any decision at all?
By expanding public support and winning congressional approval, President Trump will be better able to command the necessary resources and conduct the war. But without public and congressional support, President Trump will be considered solely responsible for the war’s outcome. Should the war expand, casualties accumulate, and the price of oil continue to rise, he will not only incur greater public disapproval, but he will be tagged with sole blame for the resulting fiasco.
Malcolm L. Cross has lived in Stephenville since 1987 and taught politics and government at Tarleton for 36 years, retiring in 2023. His political and civic activities include service on the Stephenville City Council (2000-2014) and on the Erath County Republican Executive Committee (1990-2024). He was Mayor pro-tem of Stephenville from 2008 to 2014. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Stephenville
Economic Development Authority since 2018, and as chair of the Erath County Appraisal District’s Appraisal Review Board since 2015. He is also a member of the Stephenville Rotary Club, the Board of Vestry of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, and the Executive Committee of the Boy Scouts’ Pecan Valley District. Views expressed in this column are his and do not reflect those of The Flash as a whole.
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