Common Questions

Did Congress pass the AI data centre moratorium bill?: No. The federal AI Data Centre Moratorium Act was introduced by Sanders and AOC on 25 March 2026 but was killed by the Democratic caucus — Fetterman called it 'China First' and Warner called it 'idiocy'. It has no PATH through the Republican-controlled Congress.Source: Lowdown
Has Congress authorised the Iran war?: No. Trump launched Iran strikes without Congressional authorisation. Both chambers drafted war powers resolutions; the House version failed 213-214 on 16 April 2026. Senate Republicans blocked every vote. No supplemental funding bill has been submitted.Source: Lowdown
What is the War Powers Resolution and does it apply to Iran?: The 1973 War Powers Resolution requires the president to notify Congress within 48 hours of committing forces and limits operations to 60 days without authorisation. The clock tied to Iran hostilities from 28 February 2026 expired around 1 May; Congress was not authorised.Source: Lowdown

Background

US Congress is the United States' bicameral federal legislature, established by Article I of the Constitution in 1789. It comprises the House of Representatives (435 members, two-year terms) and the Senate (100 members, six-year terms). Congress holds the sole constitutional authority to declare war, authorise federal spending, and pass federal law. Republicans hold a majority in both chambers following the 2024 elections.

Congress has been the central constitutional battleground of 2026 on two fronts. On Iran, Trump launched strikes without authorisation; both chambers drafted war powers resolutions demanding approval for continued hostilities, but Senate Republicans blocked every vote. The House War Powers Resolution failed 213-214 on 16 April. The White House has not requested a supplemental, despite the Pentagon seeking up to $200 billion. On AI and data centres, progressive members introduced the AI Data Centre Moratorium Act — killed by the Democratic caucus itself — while the broader moratorium wave reached 12 state legislatures and produced the first statewide ban in Maine on 22 April 2026. The federal moratorium failed but the state-level signal has Congress watching local politics as a leading indicator.

The defining tension is constitutional: Congress holds the war-making purse yet has been systematically bypassed on Iran. Whether it can reassert authority — on military spending, on AI infrastructure, on NASA budget cuts — is the central institutional question of 2026.

How the World Sees Them

Antiwar coalition

More than 250 civil society organisations demanded Congress halt war funding, arguing the constitutional violations set a precedent that concentrates war-making power permanently in the executive.

Democratic caucus

Democrats invoked the War Powers Resolution to demand oversight of Iran and introduced the AI moratorium; both efforts were defeated or killed internally, leaving the left without a single protective measure passing.

Republican majority

Republican leadership backed the Trump administration's Iran posture and killed the AI moratorium bill. Speaker Johnson called restricting the president's authority during active conflict 'dangerous'.

US executive branch

The White House has treated Congress as a political obstacle, bypassing arms sales review, spending war funds without supplemental requests, and refusing to submit AI-related legislation.