The Constitution gives only Congress the power to declare war, and under law, President Trump needs approval if military operations last longer than 60 days.

That window is quickly closing in Iran, but it comes at a time when the Hill is increasingly sidelined.

Will lawmakers push back at all?

And if Congress is ceding power, how does that impact what's ahead?

That's coming up on Compass Points. Hello and welcome to Compass Points. I'm Lisa Desjardin. Nick Schifrin is away.

President Trump is not the first American president to push the legal boundaries of his power as

Commander-in-Chief, and he won't be the last. But a clock is ticking. The law on war powers

gives presidents 60 days to conduct military operations without congressional

approval. That time frame from Iran is about to end. Will Congress assert any power or pushback?

Let's look at Trump's aggressive policy in the world from the other side of Pennsylvania Avenue.

Joining me now are two former lawmakers with years of foreign policy experience. Former Senator Ben Cardin is a Democrat from Maryland. He served as the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. And former Representative Connie Mack, a Republican from Florida. He served on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, chairing the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. Thank you to both of you for joining us today. It's good to be with you. Great to be here. Talking about the war in Iran, that's where we're going to start. The U.S. war is now the largest buildup, military buildup that we've seen since 2003, that of course being the war with Iraq. But that war did have congressional approval. Now, on May 1st, the Iran War will hit 60 days, as we say.

That's the time at which the War Powers Act requires congressional approval,

though President Trump can extend that for another 30 days with notification.

Senator Cardin, you know this situation well.

You voted against the authorization for the Iraq war in 2002 initially.

How do you see the role of Congress in this moment?

Well, I think Congress is the entity that authorizes the use of our force, military force,

in war. The framers of our Constitution did not want one person deciding to send our men and

women into harm's way. That's why the power to declare wars in the Constitution rests with

Congress, not the President. The War Powers Act defines that further by Congress. That's an act.

That's not in the Constitution. So there's a reason why it's important

for Congress to act. One person, the President of the United States, should not be able to get

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