Many Democrats have claimed that President Donald Trump didn’t have the legal authority to unilaterally order the Feb. 28 joint military airstrikes with Israel that resulted in the death of the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Experts have told us that, under an originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, congressional approval of the use of military force against another country is required. Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution gives the power “To declare War” to Congress.
However, in practice, several presidents have unilaterally ordered military action abroad without authorization from Congress.
In this story, we’ll look at what Democrats have said about Trump’s latest military order and review what experts already told us in similar past cases.
Claims of Illegality
Not long after the attack on Saturday, several Democrats were quick to criticize Trump’s military operation in official statements or media appearances.
Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona said in a Feb. 28 statement on his congressional website, “President Trump promised no more forever wars. Instead, he has illegally dragged us into another one without congressional authorization and no long-term strategy.”
Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia called it an “illegal war” on “Fox News Sunday” on March 1.

