[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 97 (Tuesday, June 9, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2673-S2674]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                  IRAN

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, on a separate note, Sunday marked 100 days 
since President Trump launched his war on Iran. What was true at the 
beginning of the conflict is still true: There is no evidence that the 
President has a coherent plan to resolve this quagmire of his own 
making.
  On Sunday, the President assured the Nation in an interview that he 
was ``very close to a deal.'' If that sounds like a familiar refrain, 
it is. President Trump has been saying some variation on that sentence 
every week since the war began over 100 days ago.
  Yet, just hours after he made those comments, Iran and Israel traded 
a new wave of strikes, and the Houthis--an Iranian-backed militia--
fired on Israel and threatened to further restrict shipping in the 
Middle East.
  While this latest exchange has ended, thank goodness, the larger 
regional instability remains. Global oil reserves continue to diminish 
by the hour. And

[[Page S2674]]

in a cruel irony, it appears President Trump is inching toward a deal 
with Iran that is very similar to the Obama Iran nuclear agreement 
which Trump recklessly withdrew from during his first term in office.
  Ultimately, wars cannot be won through threat or bluster. We need a 
real plan that brings a real end to these hostilities and to Iran's 
threats in the region. I am pleased my Republican colleagues are 
finally starting to realize that reality.
  Last week, the House passed a resolution requiring that the President 
receive congressional approval before taking any further military 
action against Iran, and last month, the Senate advanced a similar 
measure.
  Where in the world did Members of Congress and the House and Senate 
come up with the idea that the Congress has any authority to say 
anything about the declaration of war? Well, it might be the 
Constitution, which says in article I, section 8, that it is the 
authority and responsibility of Congress to declare war--a fact which 
this President has totally ignored when it comes to Iran.
  We cannot allow the President to wage a war without checks, 
oversight, and accountability. Congress must step up and exercise its 
responsibility.

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