President: Iran wants a deal but administration is "not satisfied"; says congressional authorization not being sought

The President told reporters that Iran "wants to make a deal, but I...I'm not satisfied with it," saying negotiators would "see what happens" as talks continue. He described Iran's leadership as "very disjointed," saying different factions offer conflicting positions and that, in the President's view, Iran's military had been largely depleted.

A reporter asked whether the administration would seek congressional authorization for the measures under discussion. The President replied that "it's never been sought before," calling such authorization "totally unconstitutional" and noting that, in his view, previous presidents had not sought it either. He said the administration remains "in touch with Congress" but would not follow a path he described as uncommon.

The President framed the situation as leverage gained by recent military operations: "they have no navy...no air force," he said, and added that the pause produced by a ceasefire gave more time for negotiation. He also warned that allowing Iran a nuclear weapon would create "problems the likes of which the world has never seen before," but said talks so far had not produced an acceptable outcome.

The President repeatedly characterized claims about Iran's military losses and the state of negotiations as his assessment, and reporters pressed about the legal basis for not seeking congressional approval. The President said the war-powers process "has never been used" in the way the questioner described and called attempts to do so unconstitutional.

The press conference closed this line of questioning with the President saying he would continue negotiations and that he was "not satisfied at this point." The administration did not announce any change in legal posture, a formal request to Congress, or a new diplomatic proposal during the session.