War Powers Resolution

Number two, in the House, in the lower chamber of Congress, the House will say we will not spend another penny on any of this until you bend to our wishes.

And so what you will see is probably Congress, the House voting on the War Powers Act, and that is sort of the authorization.

for military action, and that's something that Congress wanted to do, what the Democrats were raging about when it came to Iran.

The problem here, though, is that if Congress says we are no longer authorizing U.S. adventures in Iran, they leave an awful lot of unfinished business on the table.

where he'll still have majority and he can get some things done.

I don't think that really matters in foreign policy because they just like liberally, with small l, use the War Powers Act and do what they want.

I think a more telling sign is the recent bombing the day before the election where they hit Hashim Island.

This is how audacious they were.

It didn't happen.

We've got a War Powers Act, and you're supposed to give notice, and then after 90 days, then you pull the plug.

If you don't have specific congressional approval, we don't have an emergency use authorization, or we don't have a use of force declaration either.

So, yeah.

I felt alone.

I still feel alone, Kevin, on that point, because I am a believer in the highest law of the land, which is the Constitution.

And I really think the War Powers Resolution is unconstitutional delegation of power.

So had we and this is every president since blank and since FDR got out of office, every president has done this.

So the president has his freedom of action there.

But the old Congress, given the new mandate, may be much more willing to look at the War Powers Act and begin to exercise some of their power and some of their required and authorized

responsibilities.

What could they do? What might they do, Jim?

Well, with the War Powers Act, the executive can use military power for 30 days.

After 30 days, you have to notify the Congress of what you're doing, why, how long it's going to take, and you get another 30 days to operate.

Beyond that, you can be censured and stopped.

The money will not flow.

But it almost makes things even more unstable, doesn't it? If he loses control at home, will he be even more erratic potentially overseas?

Well, during the Vietnam War in 1973, there was this piece of legislation passed called the War Powers Act.

And that act meant that after 60 days, if you're still fighting, you have to get congressional approval.

Now, Trump and Pete Hague said have never submitted themselves to that authority.

the democrats are going to have control of the congress and they're going to bring a war powers resolution saying look we didn't authorize this war it's not popular with the american people no one wants it so it's going to make it more trump's war i mean trump came in to politics in 2015 2016 saying he was the anti-war guy he was against forever wars so his legacy ends up being attached to that war in iran There'll be an incredible irony, but also will mean that it's almost at the level of a kind of constitutional crisis with the Congress saying, look, let's get out of this conflict in Iran.

Let's settle it through diplomacy.

If Trump, you know, and often lined up presidents, presidents who don't have the Congress turn to foreign policy, if he ups the military aggression towards Iran, that's going to be a real point of tension with the Congress.

Trump really skipped that.

There was never a vote under the War Powers Act.

And that's a room for pretty messy, I think, politics in the year ahead.

The Democrats are going to say, well, He didn't seek this authorization.

Trump really skipped that.

There was never a vote under the War Powers Act, and that's a room for pretty messy, I think, politics in the year ahead.

The Democrats are going to say, well, he didn't seek this authorization.

He should.

One more follow-up for you, Ms. Hinson.

Would you switch your vote today on the War Powers Act in order to end the conflict in Iran? Yes or no? 30 seconds.

I don't think we need another resolution on the House floor.

I think the president and the U.S. military can bring it to the end.

And if he chooses to take military action, somebody needs to say this out loud.

He's passed the amount of protected time that a president has privilege and a War Powers Act could stop him.

It would force Democrats to defund the military.

But yeah, I would think that's the first order of business.