Trump Administration Claims Iran Conflict Ended with April Cease-fire

(SeaPRwire) –   The Trump administration is claiming that the conflict with Iran has already concluded thanks to the ceasefire that started in early April, a reading that would let the White House skip seeking congressional approval.

This statement builds on an argument put forward by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during Senate testimony earlier on Thursday, where he noted the ceasefire had effectively put the war on hold. Using this reasoning, the administration argues it has not yet fulfilled the requirement set forth by a 1973 law to secure formal congressional approval for military operations lasting longer than 60 days.

A senior administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the administration’s stance, noted that under the scope of that law, “the hostilities that began on Saturday, February 28 have ended.” The official confirmed that U.S. and Iranian forces have not exchanged fire since the two-week ceasefire that went into effect on April 7.

Though the ceasefire has been extended since then, Iran still maintains a stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, and the U.S. Navy is continuing a blockade to stop Iranian oil tankers from sailing out to open waters.

Per the War Powers Resolution — the legislation designed to limit a president’s military authority — President Donald Trump had until Friday to request congressional authorization or end U.S. military operations. The law also allows an administration to push that deadline back by 30 additional days.

Democrats have been pressing the administration to secure formal approval for the conflict with Iran, and the 60-day marker was poised to be a pivotal moment for a large group of Republican legislators who supported temporary military action against Tehran but demanded congressional sign-off for any longer-term involvement.

“That deadline is not a recommendation; it is a mandatory requirement,” stated Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, who voted Thursday in support of a bill that would terminate U.S. military operations in Iran, as Congress had not granted formal approval. She added that “any future military actions against Iran must have a clear mission, attainable objectives, and a well-defined plan for ending the conflict.”

Richard Goldberg, who served as director for countering Iranian weapons of mass destruction on the National Security Council during Trump’s first term, shared that he has advised administration officials to transition to a new military operation, which he proposed naming “Epic Passage” — a follow-up to Operation Epic Fury.

This new mission, he explained, “would by its nature be a self-defense operation focused on reopening the strait, while retaining the option to take offensive action to help restore freedom of navigation.”

“This solves every part of the issue in my view,” added Goldberg, who currently works as a senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington-based think tank.

During his testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday, Hegseth stated that the administration’s position was that the 60-day timer was paused while the two nations were under a ceasefire. Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat from Virginia who questioned Hegseth about the timeline, later told reporters that the defense secretary had put forth “a highly unusual argument I have never heard before” and that it “definitely lacks any legal backing.”

Katherine Yon Ebright, counsel for the Brennan Center’s Liberty and National Security Program and a war powers expert, said this reading would represent “a significant expansion of prior legal maneuvering” tied to the 1973 law.

“Let me be extremely clear and unambiguous: There is nothing in the text or intent of the War Powers Resolution that indicates the 60-day timer can be paused or ended,” she stated.

Other presidents have claimed that the military actions they authorized were not significant enough or were too sporadic to fall under the scope of the War Powers Resolution. But Trump’s conflict with Iran clearly does not fit that description, Ebright noted, adding that legislators must push back against the administration’s line of reasoning.

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Reporting by Aamer Madhani of the Associated Press was included in this article.