Johnson says ‘we’re not at war’ as Iran clock approaches 60 days
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Thursday that the U.S. is “not at war” with Iran, as the 60-day mark since Congress was notified of the conflict approaches.
“I don’t think we have an active, kinetic military bombing, firing or anything like that. Right now, we are trying to broker a peace,” Johnson told NBC News in the Capitol. “I would be very reluctant to get in front of the administration in the midst of these very sensitive negotiations, so we’ll have to see how that plays out.”
President Trump notified Congress of military operations in Iran on March 2, making Friday the 60-day threshold at which the War Powers Resolution of 1973 requires the president to wind down military operations if he does not have congressional authorization.
When asked about the 60-day deadline, the House Speaker replied, “We are not at war.”
Under the War Powers Resolution, the president can receive a 30-day extension from Congress for military operations if he “certifies that ‘unavoidable military necessity respecting the safety of United States Armed Forces’ requires their continued use in the course of bringing about their removal.”
Trump initially announced a two-week ceasefire with Tehran on April 8 but extended it indefinitely hours before it was set to expire on April 21.
Since the pause in hostilities, the Trump administration and Iranian officials have engaged in talks on a permanent peace and curbing the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program. Those talks have largely stalled, but the president told reporters Thursday that Iranian officials “want to make a deal badly.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, meanwhile, argued Thursday that the 60-day clock for the war paused when the ceasefire began earlier this month.
“We are in a ceasefire right now, which our understanding means the 60-day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire,” Hegseth told Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.
“I do not believe the statute would support that,” Kaine replied. “I think the 60 days runs maybe tomorrow, and it’s going to pose a really important legal question for the administration there.”
After Hegseth testified, the Senate again voted on a War Powers Resolution to halt military action against Iran. But the measure failed , 47 to 50, with Sens. Susan Collins (Maine) and Rand Paul (Ky.) the lone Republicans to join nearly every Democrat in voting to discharge the resolution from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Sen. John Fetterman (Pa.) was the lone Democrat to vote against discharging the resolution, sponsored by Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). Republican Sens. Jerry Moran (Kan.) and Tommy Tuberville (Ala.), along with Democratic Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.), did not vote.
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