I. Legislative Branch
1) Legislation
Senate Bills Target Protest Activity. On June 10, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) introduced S.2000 and S.2001, both of which would increase punishments for acts of violence during protests and require deportation of non-citizens convicted of a criminal offense.
Democrats and Lone Republican Call for Congressional Authorization for US Attack on Iran. On June 16 and 17, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) introduced legislation (S.Res.59 and H.Con.Res.38) to prevent the use of US military force against Iran unless authorized by Congress. Also on June 17, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced S.2087 to prohibit the use of funds for military support against Iran. On June 18, in a joint statement, Democratic leadership cautioned the Trump administration against striking Iran and affirmed the need for congressional authorization for acts of war.
House Unveils Defense Appropriations Bill. On June 16, Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) introduced H.R.4016, the Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 2026. The bill would appropriate $500,000,000 to replenish Israel’s Iron Dome system and $357,516,000 for a “Counter Islamic State of Iraq and Syria Train and Equip Fund.” The bill also empowers the Secretary of Defense to waive a provision of the Arms Export Control Act relating to end-use monitoring of defense articles and defense services.
House Resolution Affirms Support for Israel. On June 17, Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) introduced H.Res.521 to affirm US support for Israel’s security and to condemn Iran’s response to Israel’s attack.
House Bill Seeks to Punish South Africa for “Lawfare” Against Israel. On June 17, Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) introduced H.R.4051, which would suspend direct assistance to South Africa and impose sanctions on South African politicians “responsible for” their government’s “lawfare” against Israel at the International Court of Justice and alleged alignment with Iran’s “economic and military interests.”
Bipartisan Senate Bill Seeks to Repeal Caesar Act. On June 18, Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced S.2133 to repeal the Caesar Act and its sanctions on Syria. The Senate bill follows similar legislation in the House (H.R.3951).
Senate Bill Would Cap Number of Foreign Students. On June 18, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) introduced S.2111 to require a cap on the number of foreign students who may enroll in a US college or university under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.
Senate Sees New Resolution to Condemn Anti-Semitism, Political Violence. On June 18, Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) introduced S.Res.288 to condemn anti-Semitism and politically motivated violence.
2) Personnel and Correspondence
Lawmakers Demand Firing of UN Special Rapporteur for Palestine. On June 11, a group of House lawmakers urged UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to fire Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese.
Senate Democrats Call on Rubio to Retain State’s Human Rights Bureau. On June 16, SFRC Ranking Member Shaheen (D-NH) and nine other Senate Democrats urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio to preserve the staff and programs administered by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor amid Rubio’s planned reorganization of the Department of State.
SFRC Leadership Issue Statement After IMF Mission to Syria and Lebanon. On June 19, SFRC Chairman Jim Risch (R-ID) and Ranking Member Shaheen (D-NH) expressed support for financial and governance reforms in Syria and Lebanon following the conclusion of an International Monetary Fund mission to the two countries.
Bipartisan House Delegation Pushes for Strengthening of Abraham Accords. During the week of June 16-20, a bipartisan delegation of House lawmakers traveled to Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Israel. The New York Times reported that members of the delegations had spoken to officials in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates about normalization and regional concerns about Iran.
House Lawmakers Encourage Trump to Coordinate Evacuations from Israel. On June 18, Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Wesley Bell (D-MO) led a 45-member bipartisan letter to President Donald Trump, calling on the US government to coordinate the evacuation of American citizens who want to leave Israel.
II. Executive Branch
1) White House
Trump Initially Non-Committal on Joining Israeli Strikes. On June 16, President Trump wrote on Truth Social that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and encouraged Iranian civilians to evacuate Tehran. On June 17, Trump refuted reports that he had reached out to Iranian officials for “peace talks” and said that Iran should have accepted the nuclear deal “that was on the table.” He later wrote that the United States has “complete and total control of the skies over Iran,” adding that the United States knows “exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding” but would not launch a strike “for now.” On June 18, Trump told reporters that he may or may not decide to join Israel’s strikes but said that he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “keep going.” On the same day, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told a congressional committee that he had provided options to President Trump for next steps for strikes on Iran. On June 19, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump will decide within the next two weeks on whether to strike Iran. Leavitt added that US and Iranian officials, reportedly Special Envoy Steven Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, were in communication during the week. Finally, on June 22, President Trump posted on Truth Social that regime change in Iran could happen if the Iranian regime did not “Make Iran Great Again.”
Week of Uncertainty Leads to US Strikes on Iran. In a televised address to the nation on the night of June 21, President Trump announced that US forces had, earlier that evening, struck three nuclear sites in Iran—Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz—and warned that the United States would respond with even greater force if Iran retaliates. Trump claimed that the United States had “completely and fully obliterated” the sites, a description that Secretary Hegseth repeated on June 22. But on the same day, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it was “way too early” to offer a full damage assessment, and Vice President JD Vance hedged on NBC News, saying that the US attack had “substantially delayed [Iran’s] development of a nuclear weapon.”
2) Department of State
Department Announces Expanded Social Media Screening for Visa Applicants. On June 18, the Department of State announced that all applicants for F, M, and J nonimmigrant visas are now required to adjust the privacy settings on their social media profiles to “public,” citing potential threats to national security.
3) Department of Defense
US Forces Conduct Strikes in Somalia. On June 13 and 16, AFRICOM conducted strikes against the so-called Islamic State and al-Shabab, respectively.
United States Boosts Force Posture in Region. On June 16, Secretary Hegseth announced that he had ordered “additional capabilities” to be deployed to the Middle East to enhance US defensive posture.
4) Department of the Treasury
Treasury Sanctions Procurement Network for Iran’s Defense Industry. On June 20, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned a network of actors involved in procurement and transshipment of sensitive machinery for Iran’s defense industry.
Treasury Sanctions Houthi Oil Trading and Shipping Network. On June 20, OFAC sanctioned an oil trading and shipping network with ties to the Houthis.
III. Judicial Branch
Supreme Court Allows Lawsuits Against PA and PLO. On June 20, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously on a case that will allow US citizens to bring lawsuits against the Palestinian Authority and Palestine Liberation Organization in the event of their payments made to families of deceased or imprisoned terrorists who have harmed US citizens.
