Today's Poll Question: Does limiting Trump's Iran war powers help America, or Tehran?

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Get ready to vote on today's daily poll question at smerconish.com.

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But first, Michael explains it for you right here.

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Welcome to The Smerconish Podcast from SiriusXM.

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For Independent Minds.

**Michael Smerconish** (0:14)
Hello, hello. Today is Thursday. It's the 4th of June, 2026 About a month ago, we made significant, we unveiled, I should say, because they'd been in the works for a long time. We released our new version of the newsletter. And among the most significant changes, and this is because people had been asking it. I know, I'm going to sound like one of these politicians as well. You know, people are asking me to run. But people really had been asking me to put my thumbprint on each day's news cycle. And so I do so in a note Monday through Saturday. It takes Sundays off. But Monday through Saturday, in about 250 words, I weigh in on the news of the day. It might not be the front page. I mean, was it yesterday or the day before I wrote about Richard Louv's new book, and I enjoyed that. But today's note, and it's tight and it's on point, it tells you what I think about the lead story of the day, which is also the poll question of the day. And I wrote the headline, Tehran's best weapon is the clock.
The House passed a resolution yesterday to curtail President Trump's ability to wage war against Iran. The vote was 215 to 208 Four Republicans broke ranks. Thomas Massey of Kentucky, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio. Giving Democrats the margin they needed to pass a War Powers Resolution directing the President to remove US forces from hostilities unless Congress explicitly authorizes continued action. It's not going to end the war. The Senate has blocked similar measures seven times. The President will veto it if it ever reaches his desk. The Republicans are already calling it unconstitutional. The White House argues that hostilities already ended with the April ceasefire anyway.
And then I make this point. I share the distrust of these four Republican members of Congress and the Democrats of the administration on this subject.
There was never a coherent rationale offered for the imminence of an Iranian threat before February 28 That's when hostilities began. But here's what worries me. Tehran is watching. And what they see is exactly what they've been counting on. An American public growing restless. A Congress fracturing. A president whose poll numbers are sagging as gas prices climb. A Fox News survey found 60% of Americans already oppose the war. The conflict has cost taxpayers over 100 billion. The Strait of Hormuz blockade holds for now, but the ceasefire is fragile and skirmishes are ticking up.
Iran has always known it cannot defeat the United States militarily. But it doesn't have to. Time is the only weapon left in their arsenal. And this week, yesterday, Congress just handed them more of it. Every congressional vote signaling American impatience is a gift to the negotiators in Tehran. They simply have to wait us out.
They've done it before.
That's my answer to today's poll question at smerconish.com. Does Congress limiting Trump's Iran war powers benefit the US or Iran? I say Iran. Yesterday, 31,028 voted. Is the Republican fight against Trump's $1.8 billion fund a one-off or a turning point? 58.81% said one-off.
41.19% said turning point. I know who is in the category of turning point. Mark Halpern. And perhaps when the War Powers Act vote took place late in the afternoon yesterday, he said to himself, See, I called that right.
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