US senate moves once again to curb Trump’s war powers amid failure in Iran war

The US Senate plans once again to curb the war powers of American President Donald Trump in an attempt to halt his unprovoked war on Iran, which has already failed in its objectives despite heavy expenditure.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced the news on Wednesday, saying US lawmakers plan to vote next week on a resolution aimed at ending Trump’s war on Iran and requiring Congressional authorization for further attacks, in order to prevent unchecked American violence abroad.

“Congress must reassert its authority, especially at this dangerous moment,” Schumer stressed, after Trump announced that he had reached a two-week, Pakistan-mediated ceasefire agreement with Iran.

The shaky ceasefire came hours before the American president’s self-imposed deadline demanding that Tehran reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 percent of global oil supplies and other vital goods, including fertilizers, pass.

Trump had warned that “a whole civilization will die tonight” if Tehran did not "reopen" the narrow waterway—a threat that drew global condemnation for targeting Iran’s civilian infrastructure, including power plants and bridges.

The threat prompted many Democratic lawmakers to call for Trump’s removal, arguing that indiscriminate attacks on civilian sites violate the 1949 Geneva Conventions.

Schumer condemned the war as “unhinged,” noting that the US president’s so-called “Operation Epic Fury,” widely known as “Epic Failure,” has so far failed to weaken Iran’s government or halt its nuclear program.

The US’s all-out war on Iran, which quickly escalated into a regional conflict, has been a costly and illegal operation that has already consumed tens of billions of dollars and raised concerns about the strain on US weapons stockpiles.

Schumer further stressed that the unprovoked war has simultaneously driven global energy prices to record highs, illustrating the far-reaching consequences of Washington’s militarism.

Democrats in the Senate and House of Representatives, despite several attempts, have so far failed to require Congressional approval for further military operations, revealing the systemic inability of the US government to hold its leaders accountable for war crimes.

Under the US Constitution, the president does not need Congressional approval for conducting “short-term operations” or eliminating immediate threats.

“We need a permanent end to Donald Trump’s reckless war of choice,” said House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, urging the House to act and highlighting the dangerous precedent of unchecked US military intervention.

Meanwhile, in a new survey published on Wednesday, 52 percent of registered voters supported impeachment of Trump, compared to 40 percent opposed, Newsweek reported.

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Citing individuals familiar with discussions in European and West Asian capitals, Bloomberg reported that the ceasefire has boosted perceptions among US adversaries and NATO allies that Trump’s war against the Islamic Republic represents a strategic failure.

Former UK National Security Advisor Peter Ricketts believes the war made Iran strategically stronger.

“Although Iran has suffered huge physical damage and much loss of life, it emerges strategically stronger,” he said, stressing that the Islamic establishment in Iran “has survived.”

Ricketts emphasized that the war has demonstrated Tehran’s “massive leverage control” over the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Ned Price, a former Biden administration official who served as deputy to the US ambassador to the United Nations, and State Department spokesman, also stressed that Iran emerged stronger from this war.

“The war is apparently ending with Iran controlling/tolling the Strait of Hormuz, with US sanctions on Iranian oil lifted. If this is the new normal, we ’ll have spent vast amounts of blood, treasure, & standing to leave the Iranian government “poised to be strategically stronger in ways.”

Since the US and Israel launched their illegal war on Iran, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has launched over 100 waves of missile and drone operations against key US and Israeli targets.

The retaliatory attacks, carried out as part of Operation True Promise 4, forced hundreds of US troops out of the region and inflicted billions of dollars in damage to US assets in the Persian Gulf countries.

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