Op-ed / Commentary
The Clock is Ticking...What Comes Next?
By: Diane Sori and Craig Andresen / Right Side Patriots
This article is the authors opinion alone, and does not necessarily represent the views of blogspot.com or Google
On
February 28, 2026, President Donald Trump began what no U.S.
president had the courage to do over the past 47-years...he began
military action against Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of
terrorism. In concert with Israel, over the past two months the
radical islamic regime’s military assets have been pounded into the
dirt, pounded to the bottom of the sea, and eliminated from the air.
The ranks of the regime’s leadership have been decimated, and their
ability to continue striking Israel, their Arab neighbors, and U.S.
forces in the region has been severely weakened, but not completely
eliminated. Likewise,
the Iranian regime’s ability to rearm, resupply and finance their
proxy armies has also been severely damaged, but not completely
eliminated, and the regime’s hold over the Strait of Hormuz, which
Iran relies on for shipping oil...their primary source of
income...has slipped away and is now all but controlled by the U.S.
and a naval blockade.
But
this war is not over unless and until whatever remains of the Iranian
regime has been driven out of power, driven out of Iran, and/or
permanently eliminated, for to do otherwise means the threat to
Israel, the Middle East, Europe, and indeed to the United States,
still exists.
However,
here is the problem – the “War Powers Resolution.”
By
the letter of the “Resolution” not the law, the resolution
stipulates that a U.S. president can undertake military action for a
period of 60 days after having informed Congress of the action within
48 hours of the beginning of said action. And while it forbids armed
forces from remaining for more than 60 days, it does allow for a
further 30-day withdrawal period without congressional authorization
for use of military force (AUMF), or a “Declaration of War”
by the United States.
The
“War
Powers Resolution”
was adopted in 1973. This “resolution”
was
in the form of a United States congressional joint resolution and
therefore carries the full weight of law, in this case, 50
U.S.C. ch. 33.
But there is now a major debate surrounding it, with the question
being, “is
it Constitutional?” And
while every president since its enactment has argued that it violates
the “separation
of powers”
clause by infringing upon their role as “Commander-in-Chief,”
to date the United States Supreme Court has never taken up the
constitutionality of the “War
Powers Resolution,”
so the question remains unanswered. That however, is not the only
question, as the second question involves the actual 60-90 day time
frame.
At
best, that timeline itself is arbitrary, at worst it is insane, and
may well be unconstitutional in and of itself. Under such a
stipulation all that an advisory would need to do is hunker down and
hold on for 60-90 days unless Congress declares war, something
Congress has not done since World War II.
So
with that said, let’s get back to the current situation regarding
Iran. President Trump launched military action against Iran on
February 28, 2026. The 60-day clock started ticking down when he
informed Congress on March 2, 2026. That means the 60-day window
starts closing on May 2, 2026, and slams shut 30-days later, on June
1, 2026…that is unless Congress authorizes further action, which at
this point in time seems highly unlikely.
A conundrum
indeed, with the question(s) now being what happens next? Will
President Trump ignore the 1973 “War Powers Resolution”...simply
a check on executive power...and continue the war on his terms alone;
will he try get Congress to officially authorize further military
action; or will he attempt to fast track his case for continuing said
war to the Supreme Court? Only time itself will tell for the now
extended ceasefire...a ceasefire the Iranians have broken by their
firing upon ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz...does end this
week
So
here lets look at three possible options.
Option
One: If President Trump were to simply ignore the latest proposed
“War Powers Resolution,” Congress would then be forced
into a debate over whether to rein in Trump's what they deem to be an
“unchecked use” of military force, which could then see
our country being thrown into a Constitutional crisis, but only if
Congress were to pass the latest Democrat attempt at a “War
Powers Resolution.” But that's a mute point, for on Wednesday,
April 15th, the Senate rejected the Democrats latest efforts at a
“resolution” to force Trump to end U.S. military
involvement in Iran, and the following day so too did the House. This
latest failed “War Powers Resolution” basically negates
what the Democrats hoped would be the curbing of Trump’s authority
to continue the war without Congressional approval. So, logic then
dictates that if there is no acting “resolution” in place,
there is no need for Trump to ignore what does not exist.
Option
Two: As for Trump needing Congressional approval to continue the
war with Iran, there could be a way to override that as well. How so?
While the original 1973 “War Powers Resolution” was
designed to prevent prolonged military engagement without
Congressional approval, presidents of both parties have questioned
its actual Constitutionality. Why so...because Congress has never
successfully compelled let alone initiated a withdrawal under its
provisions with or without a time frame withdrawal in place. In other
words, just because a “resolution” is in place does not
mean it meets the letter of the law...which leads directly into
Trump's third option.
Option
Three: This option is probably unlikely due to the time element
involved, but it would help settle both the “resolution's”
legality and time frame issues. Simply, if Trump were to ask the
SCOTUS to fast track his case for continuing the war with Iran
without Congressional approval by presenting, as fact, that past
presidents have increasingly relied on “executive authority”
to conduct “military operations...“war” with but
a different name and a vastly longer time frame then the current 60
to 90 days war with Iran... and that they did so without a needed
formal Congressional “Declarations of War” with Trump then
citing Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and our 20-year long “undeclared
war” with Afghanistan...maybe then this game of word semantics
the Democrats are playing would come to an end, and we could finish
the job Trump intended to do.
And
if none of the options we presented come to fruition, after all the
Democrats do not want us to win nor do they want the Iranian people
to be free...if they were illegals it would be a completely different
story...then we say let our bombs fall over Iran until the second the
time frame runs out, and then let Israel finish the job that we all
know needs to be done.
Copyright
© 2026 Diane Sori and Craig Andresen / All rights reserved.
************************************************************************************U
RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS...LIVE!
Today Tuesday, April 21st from 7 to 8:30pm EST, RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS Craig Andresen and Diane Sori discuss 'The Clock is Ticking...What Comes Next?'...'New Alliances vs. Reality'; and 'A Week of Astonishing Absurdity.' Tune in to RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on https://rspradio1.com Click 'LISTEN LIVE.'
