This doesn't seem to have been reported much, but a bi-partisan group in the House has sought out to strengthen Congressional ability to reign in presidents from using military action without explicit authorization. The Constitution makes the POTUS "commander-in-chief," but gives Congress the power to declare war. New legislation being introduced is designed to clarify this Congressional authority.
Six House members -- three Republicans and three Democrats -- have joined together to introduce legislation strengthening the 1973 War Powers Act. I didn't learn of it until I read a piece by George Will this morning in the Post, in which he praised it for allowing Congress to use the power of the purse before conflicts get started.
Here's all of what I could gather:
http://threewisemen.blogspot.com/...
In sum:
The provisions for expedited judicial review and prohibiting funding to enforce compliance with the resolution seem particularly strong. Who knows if this has any change of passage, but it's clear that presidents - Republicans and Democrats - pay only lip service to the current War Powers Act and, worse, Congress has all but delegated its constitutional role in authorizing the use of military force. This is badly needed legislation that will be necessary to reign in future administrations for the executive excesses we saw under President Bush. And with Bush and most of the Republican presidential hopefuls threatening Iran these days, it can't be enacted soon enough.