Senator Tim Kaine will introduce a resolution targeting potential military action against Oman when the Senate returns next month.
The president threatened to bomb Oman if it obstructs efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, despite Muscat’s role as a US ally and mediator in the US-Iran conflict.
The administration says its military campaign is aimed at preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and insists Congress has received regular briefings on the conflict.
‘We’ll Bomb The Shit Out Of Them’: Trump’s Oman Threat Triggers Congress Pushback
Trump’s threat to bomb Oman over the Strait of Hormuz has triggered a fresh congressional push to curb his war powers, with Democrats arguing that military action against a US ally could further destabilise the region
Summary
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Congressional Democrats are preparing to use war powers legislation to challenge President Donald Trump’s military authority after he threatened to bomb Oman if the Gulf nation obstructs efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia said he plans to introduce a war powers resolution targeting Oman when the Senate returns next month. The move would add to a broader Democratic effort to constrain what lawmakers view as the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive use of military power.
War powers resolutions are largely symbolic but have become a key tool for Democrats seeking to challenge the administration’s military actions.
“At this point we may just need to file war powers resolutions for the 192 other countries,” Representative Ro Khanna of California told Axios.
Kaine Targets Oman Threat
Kaine said the US has a strong diplomatic relationship and a free-trade agreement with Oman, which has also played a role in efforts to mediate between Washington and Tehran.
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He argued that threatening Oman could undermine US interests while benefiting countries such as Russia and China.
Kaine said he would seek bipartisan support for the resolution, calling for lawmakers to prevent what he described as an unchecked expansion of presidential military power.
Trump’s threat came during a Fox News interview on Monday, when he accused Oman of potentially obstructing efforts to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
“If Oman gets in the way” of reopening the waterway, Trump said, “we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”
Asked later whether he had lost patience with Oman, Trump said he believed the country had not behaved well and that the US could deal with it easily.
White House Defends Trump’s Iran Policy
The White House defended the administration’s broader approach, arguing that the confrontation with Iran is focused on preventing Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said Trump was confronting a national-security threat that previous administrations had failed to resolve.
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She also said the administration had kept Congress informed throughout the conflict and negotiations, providing more than 30 bipartisan briefings since late February.
Oman Caught In US-Iran Standoff
Oman has emerged as an important intermediary in efforts to end the US-Iran war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The Trump administration had repeatedly suggested that Iran was close to reaching a nuclear agreement and that Oman could help facilitate negotiations over the strategic waterway.
Those expectations have since faded as talks have stalled.
The dispute has now placed Oman, a US ally that has maintained diplomatic ties with Tehran, at the centre of the confrontation.
Trump’s threat reflects growing frustration in Washington over the failure to secure an agreement with Iran, while Democrats are seeking to use congressional war powers to limit the administration’s ability to escalate the conflict further.