GOP Lawmakers Challenge Pete Hegseth’s Iran War Legal Justification Under War Powers Act

Republican lawmakers are pushing back against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s argument that the 60-day deadline under the War Powers Act Resolution of 1973 was paused by a ceasefire in Donald Trump’s war in Iran.

The 1973 resolution permits the president to deploy armed forces in hostile environments for up to 60 days without congressional approval. If no extension is granted, withdrawal is mandatory. That deadline arrived on Friday, but Hegseth asserted the clock stopped when a ceasefire was announced in mid-April.

GOP senators, however, remain unconvinced. Indiana Senator Todd Young questioned the legal basis for the claim during an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

"It stopped from the ceasefire? Which ceasefire? Does the ceasefire still count if they don’t cease firing? I don’t know. Is there any legal precedent to this? I mean, these are the sorts of questions members would ask."

The U.S. tested the ceasefire’s durability by imposing a military blockade on Iranian ports and seizing an Iranian cargo ship. Meanwhile, Israel—America’s ally in the joint operation—continued its intense airstrikes in Lebanon.

North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis raised concerns about whether Hegseth comprehended the legal constraints of the campaign.

"I’ll let my legal experts tell me if they agree… I felt like the War Powers Resolution says in 60 days you have to take some action."

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley also disputed Hegseth’s assertion that congressional approval was unnecessary.

"The right way to make that argument to Congress would be to put that in writing and send that up here to us."

"I don’t really want to do that, because I don’t want to open up further conflict. I want to wind it down."