War Powers Clock Ticks as Congress Faces Iran Vote, Sinking Trump Polls

Congress barreled toward a constitutional reckoning this week as the 60-day limit under the 1973 War Powers Resolution drew near, requiring lawmakers to vote on whether to authorize or halt President Trump's ongoing military action against Iran — even as Trump's approval ratings sank to the lowest point of his current term.

Day 57 of the Iran campaign arrived with Capitol Hill paralyzed by competing deadlines. Speaker Mike Johnson has shown little appetite to challenge the president on the war. The House may move to accept a formal written justification from Trump rather than force a direct authorization vote, officials said. At the same time, Congress must renew a foreign surveillance program that civil liberties advocates say violates Americans' rights. House Republicans are scrambling to assemble a budget reconciliation package that would restore full funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Border Patrol and the broader Department of Homeland Security.

For Treasure Coast residents, the convergence matters directly. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., an Army combat veteran who represents Martin and St. Lucie counties and sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, will be among the lawmakers forced to publicly align with or against the administration's war posture — a vote that military families from Port St. Lucie to Hobe Sound will be watching closely.

Trump's political standing adds a volatile backdrop. Multiple recent surveys show his approval at levels last seen when he left office in January 2021, with dissatisfaction running especially high on his handling of the economy and the cost of living. The erosion has reached unusual places: former Trump ally Tucker Carlson and his brother Buckley Carlson — who served as a Trump speechwriter — used Carlson's podcast this week to raise the prospect of invoking the 25th Amendment. "The 25th Amendment is there for a reason. It's not crazy to talk about it in this context," Buckley Carlson said on the program. "If our country is suffering great and lasting damage, which it seems to be, then sober minds need to come in and exercise what power they have."

Republicans are also contending with midterm warning signs. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report surveyed the 36 most competitive House seats and found Democrats leading across that map by an average of six points, public documents indicate. Florida's redistricting battle — an attempt to counterbalance Democratic gains elsewhere — remains unresolved in the courts.

Cabinet turbulence deepened the week's instability. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer departed under an investigation for alleged misconduct, becoming the third cabinet secretary to leave in less than two months, following Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Separately, Trump's Justice Department closed its criminal probe into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell over alleged overspending at the Fed's Washington headquarters. Powell's term expires in May.

The War Powers vote — or the procedural maneuvering to avoid one — is expected to come to a head before Congress departs for its next recess.

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