Posted by As of today (March 8th, 2026), Trump’s war with Iran has pushed my investment portfolio down by almost $15,000 in the past week. I asked Google AI if the president has the power to declare war on another country and this was the answer: “No, the U.S. President does not have the constitutional power to declare war; that authority is exclusively granted to Congress under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. While the President acts as Commander-in-Chief, they cannot unilaterally declare war or authorize large-scale military actions, although they may respond to sudden, imminent threats.”
It is debatable whether Iran posed a sudden imminent threat. In my opinion, the war with Iran is just another over-extension of presidential power by Trump. The War Powers Resolution of 1973 was designed to limit a President’s ability to engage in long-term military action without congressional approval, generally requiring troops to be withdrawn within 60–90 days unless authorized by Congress. Since no ground troops have been deployed, they call this a “short-term military action”. It sounds similar to Russia referring to the war in Ukraine as a “special military operation”.
If successful, the goal of ridding the world of a government run by a fundamental religious ideology that supports terrorism, would be commendable. Whether that can be accomplished in 60-90 days without destroying our economy is the big question. As for my investment strategy… before the start of the military action in Iran, I acquired shares in a defense ETF and also have shares in a domestic oil producer. Most of my other investments were doing well before this all started, so I have no reason to sell. If anything, I will be looking to put more money into the holdings that I already have.