War Powers Resolution

The War Powers Resolution (WPR) is a federal law enacted by the US Congress in 1973, passed over President Nixon's veto, to reassert congressional authority over the commitment of US armed forces to combat. It requires the President to notify Congress within 48 hours of deploying troops into hostilities and, crucially, sets a 60-day clock: if Congress has not declared war or specifically authorised the action within that period, the President must Begin withdrawing forces. A further 30-day withdrawal period may follow. Every President since Nixon has contested the WPR's constitutionality, but none has openly defied it to the point of a Supreme Court test.

In the 2026 Iran-Israel war, the WPR's 60-day clock became one of five major legal and political deadlines converging in a 10-day April window. With the clock running from the initial deployment, the 29 April deadline approached as Congress returned from recess and received what The Intercept reported as stale, incomplete casualty data from the Pentagon. Congress was simultaneously debating an authorisation resolution, with the WPR deadline functioning as a forcing mechanism that no administration can indefinitely ignore.

The WPR has never been fully tested in court and successive administrations have used creative legal interpretations to avoid triggering its compliance provisions. However, the combination of the 60-day clock, rising casualty figures, and a politically divided Congress created genuine constitutional pressure. Members invoking the WPR could force floor votes on withdrawal, complicating the White House's military strategy at a critical juncture.