By Dan Berman, Devan Cole, CNN
(CNN) — Legal experts are already skeptical of President Donald Trump’s constitutional authority to launch new military action against Iran without Congress’ approval, especially if it leads to a prolonged conflict.
Like with the US bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities last summer and the January military capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the attacks bring the issue of executive authority and the extent of presidential powers to the forefront.
The White House hasn’t presented a legal justification to the public, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio didn’t give a full accounting of one to members of Congress, multiple sources told CNN.
Trump “violated the Constitution by invading Iran because the Constitution is crystal clear on who has the authority to declare war and commit American service members to battle and that is Congress alone,” said Christopher Anders, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union who is an expert on national security matters.
“The president has tried to grab that power for himself without getting authorization from Congress before doing so,” Anders added.
The Constitution unambiguously states that only Congress can declare or authorize war.
“This is very obviously a war,” said Ilya Somin, a law professor at George Mason University and a scholar at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank. “You don’t have to take my word for that — Trump himself says it’s a war.”
In his message announcing the strikes early Saturday, the president said: “The Iranian regime seeks to kill. The lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties. That often happens in war, but we’re doing this not for now. We’re doing this for the future, and it is a noble mission.”
CNN has reached out to the Justice Department and White House counsel’s office for comment.
While only Congress can declare or authorize war, Trump and other presidents have continuously cited the Constitution’s Article II, which says the commander in chief has the power to direct US military forces in engagements necessary to advance American national interests abroad.
In addition, the Supreme Court has been generous in approving Trump’s expansive use of power, most notably in its 2024 immunity ruling. That view contributed to the analysis to move forward under Article II authority when the US struck Iran last summer, a senior White House official said at the time.
Article II was used in part to legally justify the recent US military operation to capture Maduro. The Justice Department issued a classified legal opinion (and later a redacted version) saying Trump was not limited by domestic law in carrying out law enforcement operations overseas.
What if the conflict goes on longer?