Pete Hegseth Says Iran Ceasefire Pauses War Powers Act 60-Day Limit as Democrats Object

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators that the Trump administration believes a ceasefire with Iran pauses the 60-day limit imposed by the War Powers Act, even as Democrats object to that interpretation.

“(The Hill) — Podcaster Joe Rogan said on Thursday that President Trump’s strategy in Iran “doesn’t make sense,” renewing his criticism of the conflict days afterappearing alongsidethe president for an executive order signing at the White House”

CBS 42

Under the 1973 statute described by Newsweek, presidents must obtain congressional authorization for military action after 60 days, with an additional 30-day period allowed to wind down hostilities if Congress is notified.

CBS 42

Newsweek reports that “That 60‑day deadline for the Iran conflict is set to expire Friday,” and Hegseth said, “We are in a ceasefire right now, which our understanding means the 60‑day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire.”

Democratic Senator Tim Kaine disagreed, saying he did not believe the statute supported that interpretation and raising what he called “serious constitutional concerns.”

Newsweek also says Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine faced a second day of questioning on Capitol Hill as Democrats pressed them over their handling of the Iran war.

The same Newsweek account places the Senate Armed Services Committee’s broader context alongside a proposed 2027 military budget, stating that the hearing covered testimony on the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 military budget, which would raise defense spending to a record $1.5 trillion.

In that setting, Hegseth and Caine emphasized “the need for expanded drone capabilities, missile defense systems and new warships,” according to Newsweek.

Alongside the War Powers dispute, Newsweek describes a separate line of questioning that began after a dispute over a social media video that urged U.S. troops to resist unlawful orders.

Newsweek says Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona questioned Hegseth publicly for the first time since the Pentagon moved to formally censure Kelly, a former Navy pilot, for participating in the video.

Mehr News Agency

It adds that a federal judge temporarily blocked that action in February, and that Sen. Elissa Slotkin of Michigan—another Democrat who appeared in the video and sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee—also questioned Hegseth.

In the same account, Kelly pressed Hegseth to distance himself from a March 13 remark in which Hegseth said there should be “no quarter, no mercy for our enemies,” with Kelly arguing that such language could conflict with the Pentagon’s Law of War guidance on surrendering combatants.

Newsweek quotes Hegseth’s response as, “We fight to win and we follow the law,” and then quotes Kelly’s reply: “Your response here right now makes it clear to the American people exactly why you are not right for this job.”

Newsweek further reports that Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine faced nearly six-hour House Armed Services Committee hearing questioning the day before, where Democrats and some Republicans pressed them over “the war’s costs in dollars and lives, as well as shrinking U.S. stockpiles of key weapons.”

The same Newsweek narrative says Hegseth issued sharp criticism of opponents, telling the Senate panel in his opening statement, “the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless naysayers and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans.”

CBS 42, citing The Hill, reports that podcaster Joe Rogan criticized President Trump’s Iran strategy after Trump extended a ceasefire, saying, “Doesn’t make sense.”

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Trump administration believes a ceasefire with Iran pauses the 60‑day limit imposed by the War Powers Act, despite objections from Democrats who say the law does not allow for such an exception”

Newsweek

The CBS 42 account says Rogan made the comment on Thursday while discussing the situation in the Middle East on his podcast, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” with Australian comedian James McCann.

It quotes Rogan responding to McCann’s question about whether it was “gonna be okay” with, “No one f—— knows,” and then describing the ceasefire extension while noting continued attacks: “I mean, what’s going on with the Iran’s — the ceasefire? Supposedly, they extended, but then they’re shooting at ships,” with Rogan adding, “with a sigh.”

CBS 42 says Trump “indefinitely extended a ceasefire with Iran at Pakistan’s request on Tuesday, hours before the previous two-week truce was set to expire,” and that Trump “also declared that the U.S. would maintain its naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.”

In the same CBS 42 report, McCann questioned the rationale behind the conflict, including whether it was aimed at regime change, and Rogan said he was unsure why the Trump administration chose to launch the initial strikes when it did.

CBS 42 quotes Rogan saying, “People have wanted people of out of Iran, the people that are running Iran, for 47 years but no one has actually gone and done it the way this administration did,” and adds Rogan’s conclusion: “And it doesn’t make sense they choose to do it when they did.”

The report also includes Rogan’s skepticism about an exit strategy, quoting him: “You got to wonder like, how do you get out of this and what does the exit look like?” and “Do we have troops over there forever now? Do we subsidize them if we blow up their power grid and infrastructure?”

Mehr News Agency frames Trump’s ceasefire approach as incoherent, describing “rapid, contradictory public statements” and a “negotiation-by-tweet” style that leaves diplomats and allies confused.

In its account, Trump’s Iran policy is characterized by shifting between extreme threats and sudden de-escalation, including a move “from threatening to "kill an entire civilization" in Iran to announcing a ceasefire hours later.”

CBS 42

Mehr News Agency says Trump announced an extension of a ceasefire with Iran after threatening military action, and it describes the deal as “strategic incoherence,” while also stating that the ceasefire extension was made “at the request of Pakistan.”

The report says the ceasefire began on April 8, 2026, and that Trump announced a surprise extension on April 21 to give Iran time to submit a proposal to end the war, which Mehr News Agency says began on Feb 28, 2026.

While extending the ceasefire, Mehr News Agency says Trump confirmed that “the U.S. Navy will continue to blockade Iranian ports,” and it adds that Iran has termed that “an act of war and a violation of the truce,” producing a “dual blockade” situation.

Mehr News Agency also says the talks have been marked by erratic messaging, with Trump alternating between threatening to destroy Iranian infrastructure and expressing optimism about a “great deal.”

It further asserts that “The truce has not stopped actions at sea,” and it says the U.S. maintained its naval blockade while Iran seizing ships contributed to ongoing maritime conflict; it also says “The threatening rhetoric led to bipartisan criticism” and quotes that some called the comments “evil and madness” and even suggested the use of the 25th Amendment.

Across the accounts, the stakes are presented as both constitutional and operational, with the War Powers deadline and the question of what a ceasefire means under the law sitting alongside debates over military strategy and weapons planning.

“In his second term (2025–2026), Donald Trump's ceasefire policies are often described as incoherent due to a combination of rapid, contradictory public statements, high-stakes brinkmanship followed by sudden de-escalation, and a "negotiation-by-tweet" style that leaves diplomats and allies confused”

Mehr News Agency

Newsweek ties the Senate questioning to a specific statutory framework, saying the 1973 statute requires congressional authorization for military action after 60 days and describing an additional 30-day wind-down if Congress is notified, while also reporting that “That 60‑day deadline for the Iran conflict is set to expire Friday.”

Mehr News Agency

It then places Hegseth’s ceasefire interpretation directly against Tim Kaine’s objection, quoting Kaine’s “serious constitutional concerns” and Hegseth’s claim that “the 60‑day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire.”

CBS 42, meanwhile, captures public skepticism about whether the strategy is coherent, quoting Rogan’s “Doesn’t make sense” and his description that the ceasefire is extended “but then they’re shooting at ships.”

Mehr News Agency adds a different layer of risk by describing a “dual blockade” in which the U.S. continues to blockade Iranian ports even as a ceasefire is extended, and it says “The truce has not stopped actions at sea.”

In that same Mehr account, the timeline is anchored to April 8, 2026 for the start of the ceasefire and April 21, 2026 for the surprise extension, with the war itself described as beginning on Feb 28, 2026.

Newsweek also links the political fight to resource decisions, stating that the Senate Armed Services Committee covered testimony on the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 military budget that would raise defense spending to a record $1.5 trillion, while Hegseth and Caine emphasized “expanded drone capabilities, missile defense systems and new warships.”