News India Times

www.newsindiatimes.com – that’s all you need to know News India Times (May 16, 2026 - May 22, 2026) May 22, 2026 6 US Affairs US Senate Blocks Latest Bid To Rein In Trump Iran War Powers, Support Grows U .S. Senate Republicans onWednesday blocked the latest Democratic-led effort to end the Iran war until it is authorized by Congress, but the measure edged closer to passage as a third Re- publican voted to advance the bill. The Senate voted 50-49 not to advance the war pow- ers resolution, nearly along party lines. Three Repub- licans joined every Democrat but one in backing the measure sponsored by Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon. It was the seventh time this year that President Donald Trump‘s fellow Republicans in the Senate had blocked similar resolutions. Republicans Rand Paul of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted in favor of moving ahead, while Democrat John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted with Republicans to block it. The vote was the first in the Senate since the conflict hit a 60-day deadline on May 1 for Trump to come to Congress about the war. Trump declared then that a ceasefire had “terminated” hostilities against Iran. Under a 1973 U.S. war powers law passed in response to the VietnamWar, a U.S. president can wage military action for only 60 days before ending it, asking Congress for authorization or seeking a 30-day extension due to “unavoidable military necessity regarding the safety of United States Armed Forces” while withdrawing forces. Democrats disputed Trump‘s assertion that the deadline did not apply because of a ceasefire, saying the conflict is ongoing. “There’s not a cessation of war hostilities,” Merkley told reporters before the vote, citing the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and strikes on Iranian ships and Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on U.S. ships and tankers. “Both sides are still engaged in hostilities, and so I don’t accept that the 60-day clock is suspended,” he said. Merkley and other Senate Democrats said they planned to bring up another war powers resolution next week, and every week until the war ends or Trump comes to lawmakers for authorization. Democrats in the House have also introduced war powers resolutions, also blocked by Republicans. Democrats have called on Trump to come to Congress for authorization to use military force, noting that the U.S. Constitution says that Congress, not the president, can declare war. They have warned that Trump may have pulled the country into a long conflict without setting out a clear strategy. Republicans – and theWhite House – say Trump‘s actions are legal and within his rights as commander- in-chief to protect the U.S. by ordering limited military operations. Some congressional Republicans have accused Demo- crats of filing the war powers resolutions only because of their partisan opposition to Trump. - Reuters By Patricia Zengerle place such that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.” CHINESE SUPERTANKER CROSSES STRAIT The conflict is weighing heavily on global energy markets. Global oil supply will fall by around 3.9 million barrels per day in 2026 and undershoot demand due to disruptions caused by the Iran war, the International En- ergy Agency said onWednesday, with more than 1 billion barrels of Middle East supply already lost. The Trump administration said on Tuesday that senior U.S. and Chinese officials had agreed last month that no country should be able to charge tolls on traffic through the region, in an effort to project consensus on the issue ahead of the summit. China, a major buyer of Iranian oil that maintains close ties with Tehran, did not dispute that account. OnWednesday, a Chinese supertanker carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude sailed through the Strait of Hormuz, ship-tracking data showed, marking the third known passage by a Chinese oil tanker through the chan- nel since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28. Other countries are exploring shipping arrangements similar to Tehran’s deals with Iraq and Pakistan, sources said, potentially entrenching Tehran’s control of the waterway through which fertilisers, petrochemicals and other bulk commodities vital to global supply chains normally flow. ISRAEL CONTINUES TO STRIKE LEBANON Iran has demanded security guarantees for Lebanon as part of its proposal to end the wider war, but despite a U.S.-mediated ceasefire announced last month, Israel has continued to strike Hezbollah. OnWednesday, Israeli airstrikes on cars in Lebanon killed 12 people, including two children, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Some of the strikes targeted vehicles well beyond the main theatre of conflict in the south, on the coastal high- way south of Beirut, security sources said. - Reuters Iran War Looms Over Trump’s China Visit, Shifts Alliances PHOTO:REUTERS/KYLIE COOPER An American flag flies outside the U.S. Capitol building at sunset, as members of Congress work to resolve a dispute over immigration enforcement and avert a looming partial government shutdown, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 30, 2026. Krishnamoorthi Named Ranking Member Of House Intelligence Subcommittee On National Intelligence Enterprise C ongressman Raja Krishnamoor- thi (D-IL), a senior member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, was announced today as Ranking Member of the National Intelligence Enterprise Subcommittee, which oversees the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, FBI intelligence operations, the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), the Treasury Depart- ment’s Office of Intelligence and Analysis, and intelligence offices across the federal government. “As Ranking Member of the National Intelligence Enterprise Subcommittee, I will work to ensure our intelligence agen- cies are prepared to confront the grow- ing threats posed by foreign adversaries, cyberattacks, espionage, terrorism, and transnational criminal organizations,” said Krishnamoorthi. “Congress has a re- sponsibility to conduct rigorous oversight of the Trump Administration, strengthen our national security capabilities, and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent effec- tively and responsibly. At the same time, we must safeguard the constitutional rights and civil liberties that define our democracy.” PHOTO:X @CONGRESSMANRAJA Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill. Press release - Continued From Page 5