Trump to Congress: Iran War Is 'Terminated'

President Trump says the Iran war is over—at least as far as the law is concerned. In a letter to Congress obtained by Politico, Trump declared that "hostilities … have terminated," arguing that an open-ended ceasefire with Tehran stops the 60-day clock under the War Powers Resolution, which otherwise would require him to secure congressional approval or start winding down the conflict. (Defense secretary Pete Hegseth signaled the strategy in comments to lawmakers on Thursday.)

"There has been no exchange of fire between the United States and Iran since April 7, 2026," states Trump's letter. "The hostilities that began on February 28, 2026, have terminated." The administration is still enforcing a naval blockade of Iranian ports and keeping about 50,000 US troops in the region, a reality critics say undercuts Trump's claim. The letter lands as GOP support is showing its first real cracks: Sen. Susan Collins on Thursday became the first Republican to join Democrats in voting against the war's continuation, per the AP. The 60-day "deadline is not a suggestion; it is a requirement," she said in a statement.

• 'Not satisfied:' In comments to reporters on Friday afternoon, Trump also appeared to reject Iran's latest peace proposal. "They want to make a deal, but I'm not satisfied with it," he said, when asked about a Friday report in Iran state media that Tehran passed along a new offer to Pakistani mediators. As the New York Times notes, Trump made a similar comment about a previous Iran proposal that offered to open the Strait of Hormuz but to delay talks on Tehran's nuclear program. Details of the latest offer have not been disclosed. "We're negotiating with them—their teams are unbelievably disjointed, but we are negotiating," said Trump.