Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth argued Thursday that the Trump administration can continue the Iran war despite a Vietnam-era law that requires Congress’s approval after 60 days of fighting, in an apparent attempt to stave off the rapidly approaching deadline.
His comments came in a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee where Hegseth asserted that an ongoing ceasefire between Washington and Tehran “pauses” the countdown.
The Trump administration did not ask Congress to authorize the Iran war before launching joint strikes with Israel on Feb. 28. Friday marks the 60-day deadline, after which the War Powers Act requires approval from lawmakers for hostilities to continue.
Hegseth declined to say whether the administration would seek lawmakers’ consent, deferring to the White House.
In a statement, the White House said the administration was in “active conversations with the Hill” regarding the 60-day deadline and warned against lawmakers trying “to score political points by usurping the Commander-in-Chief’s authority.”
Sen. Roger Wicker (Mississippi) the Armed Services Committee’s Republican chairman, told reporters after the hearing he has “not been too concerned” about the 60-day deadline and declined to say whether the Trump administration should seek approval from Congress.
The hearing, occurring as peace talks between Washington and Tehran remain stalled, followed Hegseth’s combative appearance Wednesday in the House, where he sparred with Democrats whom he labeled “the biggest adversary we face at this point” because of their scrutiny of the Iran war. Hegseth repeated the attack in his opening remarks Thursday, saying that “defeatists from the cheap seats” — in both parties — were undermining the war after only two months.
The secretary appeared alongside Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Jules W. Hurst III, the Pentagon’s acting comptroller.
Democrats have accused Hegseth of lying to the American public about the conflict in Iran, which they say has added financial burdens to American taxpayers and lacks a clear path to victory. The defense secretary has defended the military operation as crucial to denying Iran a nuclear weapon — one of several rationales the Trump administration has offered for starting the conflict alongside Israel.
“This war is stuck. The Strait of Hormuz is closed. The Iranian regime is in place,” said Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Arizona).
Later Thursday, the Senate rejected the latest of many resolutions intended to halt the war in Iran by a vote of 50-47, though one additional Republican — Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) — joined nearly all Democrats in supporting the measure. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) also supported the measure and has backed previous efforts to rein in the administration’s war powers.
In a statement, Collins said that President Donald Trump’s authority as commander in chief “is not without limits” and that the deadline under the War Powers Act was “clear.”
“That deadline is not a suggestion; it is a requirement,” Collins said.
Lawmakers from both parties have also scrutinized Hegseth’s recent personnel decisions, including the firing of Navy Secretary John Phelan and the forced early retirement of the Army chief of staff, Gen. Randy George.
Sen. Joni Ernst, a Republican who represents Iowa — home to George and Gen. James Mingus, another senior Army officer ousted by Hegseth — said Thursday that she was “disappointed” by their dismissals.
Under questioning from Sen. Jack Reed (Rhode Island), the committee’s top Democrat, Hegseth said that the administration is only focused on “merit” in its personnel decisions, which have included the disproportionate removals of Black and female officers. He declined to say where George had fallen short and why he had been forced to retire before the end of his four-year term leading the Army.
“We will continue to make changes as necessary with general officers,” Hegseth said.
In a later exchange with Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Michigan), a prominent critic of the secretary, Hegseth declined to rule out the possibility that the Pentagon could deploy troops to polling stations during the November midterms. He dismissed the question as a “hypothetical.”
“I’ve never been ordered to do anything illegal, and I won’t,” Hegseth said, accusing Slotkin of “performing for cable news” during her allotted time for questions.
This week’s hearings were intended to be a chance for Hegseth and Caine to defend the Trump administration’s record $1.5 trillion defense budget proposal. Republicans have mostly welcomed the massive spending plan, saying it’s necessary to increase the production of critical weaponry further drained during the Iran war and to remain competitive with American adversaries, such as China.
Democrats, including some who support higher military spending, have argued that the sum is unrealistic given the nearly $40 trillion federal debt.
“I’m skeptical, and such a request demands intense scrutiny,” Reed said.
Hurst, the Pentagon’s acting comptroller, said during Wednesday’s hearing that the war in Iran has cost about $25 billion since it began in late February. Responding to further questioning Thursday, Hurst said that the additional expense of recovering from damage inflicted on U.S. bases during the war is hard to estimate, given that the Pentagon’s future force posture in the region is unclear.
Wicker, the committee’s Republican chair, also criticized the White House Office of Management and Budget for being slow to roll out the more than $150 billion in additional military spending Congress passed last year.
Of that sum, Hegseth said, only $26 billion has been spent so far, though he predicted the pace would soon accelerate.
Under questioning from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), Hegseth denied that the Trump administration had asked for more than $200 billion in supplemental defense spending to pay for the Iran war. The Pentagon sent the White House such a proposal in March, though the administration has since reduced the total and has yet to submit the final request to Congress, The Washington Post has reported.
Meanwhile, negotiations aimed at ending the war have not advanced, though the ceasefire has mostly held for the past few weeks.
Trump has demanded that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a vital passageway for the shipping of oil and other goods, and completely shutter its nuclear program. The Iranians have ruled out any commitments until the United States lifts its naval blockade of the country’s ports.
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