US President Donald Trump has vetoed a bill that would have reined in his power to unilaterally make war against Iran. The bill was passed by lawmakers after the White House's January decision to assassinate a leading Iranian general without notifying Congress, bringing the region to the brink of war.
In March, federal lawmakers passed a resolution amending the War Powers Act of 1973 by requiring the president to obtain Congressional approval before ordering military actions against other states.
“Congress should not have passed this resolution,” the White House said in a Wednesday press release on Trump's behalf announcing the veto decision.
Trump further argued the resolution was “based on misunderstandings of facts and law,” adding that his January 3 order to assassinate Iranian Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike outside Baghdad Airport “was fully authorized by law, including by the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002 and Article II of the Constitution.”
“Finally, S.J. Res. 68 would have greatly harmed the President's ability to protect the United States, its allies, and its partners,” the statement continues. “The resolution implies that the President's constitutional authority to use military force is limited to defense of the United States and its forces against imminent attack. That is incorrect. We live in a hostile world of…
