Trump Tells Congress Hostilities With Iran Have 'Terminated,' Arguing No Approval Is Needed
Washington — President Donald Trump on November 6 sent a letter to congressional leaders saying that the U.S. war with Iran has been 'terminated' and that the White House does not need congressional approval to maintain its military presence around Iran. The letter arrived just ahead of a deadline under the War Powers Act.
In the letter, Trump wrote that on April 7 he ordered a two-week ceasefire that has since been extended; that there has been no exchange of fire between U.S. forces and Iran since April 7; and that 'the hostilities that began on February 28 have terminated.' A senior administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity to explain the government's position, said it was that conclusion that made seeking congressional authorization unnecessary.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth echoed the argument in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee on November 5, saying the ceasefire means the War Powers Act's 60-day clock 'pauses or stops.' Legal critics dispute that reading: Katherine Yon Ebright, a counsel in the Brennan Center's liberty and national security program, said nothing in the text or design of the War Powers Resolution allows the clock to be paused.
Under the War Powers Act (the War Powers Resolution of 1973), a president who commits U.S. forces to hostilities without congressional authorization must seek approval or end the fighting before the 60-day deadline, with a further 30 days allowed for a safe withdrawal. Democrats have been pressing the administration to seek public authorization for the war, treating the 60-day deadline as a potential turning point for some Republicans.
The letter came one day after the Senate, on November 5, rejected a war powers resolution 48 to 51 that would have required Trump to end military action against Iran. The Associated Press also notes that although the ceasefire has been extended, Iran continues to block the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. Navy maintains its blockade, so the military standoff continues even though the shooting has stopped. In a speech in Florida the same day, Trump again claimed victory in the war with Iran. (Source: Associated Press)
Related:
Trump Meets National Security Team on Iran: Says He Will Soon Decide Whether to Resume All-Out War
Source: Associated Press
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：特朗普与国家安全团队在白宫战情室开会（白宫官方照片，资料图）。公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: President Trump and his national security team meet in the Situation Room of the White House (official White House photo; file photo). Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
- 2026-10-30Trump: Vance's Letter to Iran's Security Chief Was About Medical Supplies, Not a Directed Push to Revive Peace Talks
- 2026-10-30Follow-Up: Trump Says War With Iran Will Be "Wrapped Up Soon," Insisting on a Guarantee Tehran Never Gets a Nuclear Weapon
- 2026-10-31Iran's Military Says Russian Su-35 Fighters Have Been Bought and Will Be Delivered After the War
- 2026-11-01Iran's Revolutionary Guards Arrest Military-Industry Technician Accused of Leaking Drone and Missile Secrets to Israel
- 2026-11-02US Carries Out Limited Strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island After Iranian Fire at US Aircraft, Officials Say
- 2026-11-02Follow-Up: Vance Says US-Iran Talks Have Made Progress, With No Deadline Set for Resuming Strikes
- 2026-11-02Follow-up: U.S.-Iran Talks End Without Breakthrough but Contacts Continue: Tehran Says Condensed Seven-Step Plan Could Reopen Strait of Hormuz Within Two Days
- 2026-11-02Israeli UN Envoy Danon Denies Netanyahu Is Pressing Trump to Resume Strikes on Iran
- 2026-11-02Putin Holds Phone Call With Iran's Security Chief Rezaei on Middle East Situation and Strategic Partnership
- 2026-11-03Follow-Up: Iran Says U.S. Reply Is 'Not Convincing': Seven Conditions Must Be Answered and Met before Hormuz Reopens
- 2026-11-03Iranian Lawmaker Says Ships From China, India, Iraq and Qatar Are Exempt From Strait of Hormuz Transit Restrictions
- 2026-11-04Iran Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf on US Midterm Results: Says Americans Said No to War
- 2026-11-04Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei Says Those Expecting a US Policy Shift Are Greatly Mistaken
- 2026-11-04Follow-Up: Israel's UN Ambassador Danon Responds to Vance: Striking Iran Was America's Decision and Israel Backed It
- 2026-11-04Iranian State TV Airs a Missile Target Map of Europe Listing Kyiv, Lviv and Odesa as Potential Targets
- 2026-11-04Calls Grow Inside Iran to Build Nuclear Weapons: Clerics and Lawmakers Urge a Bomb and Withdrawal From the Non-Proliferation Treaty
- 2026-11-05Russia's Foreign Ministry Renews Advice: Citizens Should Postpone Travel to Iran
- 2026-11-05Putin Meets Iran's Security Council Secretary Rezaei at the Kremlin: Visitor Delivers a Message From Mojtaba Khamenei
- 2026-11-05Trump Meets National Security Team on Iran: Says He Will Soon Decide Whether to Resume All-Out War
- 2026-11-05Follow-Up: Iran Sends Nuclear Proposal to the U.S. via Qatar, Tying Any Talks to Seven Demands
- 2026-11-05Senate Rejects War Powers Resolution 48-51 That Would Have Required Trump to End Military Action Against Iran
- 2026-11-06Follow-Up: Iranian Media Say Two Projectiles Struck the Suza Area of Qeshm Island; No Official Word on Damage
- 2026-11-06Trump Tells Congress Hostilities With Iran Have 'Terminated,' Arguing No Approval Is NeededThis story
