House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) called out Democrats on Monday for their sudden concern over presidential war powers, accusing them of playing politics in the wake of President Donald Trump’s decisive strike on Iran’s nuclear program.
Speaking to reporters at the Capitol, Johnson rejected the idea that a war powers resolution was necessary following the U.S. bombing of three Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend. The resolution, introduced by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), seeks to limit Trump’s ability to carry out further strikes without congressional approval.
“I don’t think this is an appropriate time for a war powers resolution, and I don’t think it’s necessary,” Johnson said. “For 80 years, presidents of both parties have acted with the same commander-in-chief authority under Article II of the Constitution.”
Johnson blasted the selective outrage from Democrats, pointing out that former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden both carried out military operations in the Middle East without congressional authorization—and met little to no resistance from their own party.
“President Biden used it three times for operations in the Middle East. President Obama spent eight months bombing Libya to take down a regime,” Johnson said. “I don’t remember any Democrats raising constitutional concerns then. Now suddenly they’re outraged. It’s all politics.”
New — Speaker Johnson defends Trump on Iran and responds to our questions about Qatar attack. Says he was briefed this AM.
On whether Congress should have a vote.
“The commander in chief has Article II responsibilities.” Said not an “appropriate time” for vote on war powers pic.twitter.com/njScF1HNc5
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) June 23, 2025
President Trump’s strike, which hit Fordo, Natanz, and Isfahan, was aimed at halting Iran’s nuclear weapons development. The administration maintains the action was necessary and justified under the president’s constitutional authority. Iran retaliated Monday by firing missiles at a U.S. base in Qatar. Trump later confirmed there were no American casualties and reiterated his push for peace.
Despite issuing harsh criticisms, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-CA) admitted he hadn’t even reviewed the war powers resolution introduced by Massie and Khanna. Still, he claimed Trump’s actions were inconsistent with the Constitution.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) introduced a similar measure in the Senate, signaling that Democrats may attempt to challenge Trump’s authority despite their party’s long track record of military actions without congressional sign-off.
Speaker Johnson made clear he has no intention of letting politics interfere with national security, especially when the commander-in-chief is acting to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran.