On Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported that US President Donald Trump instructed aides to prepare for a prolonged blockade of Iran, indicating a shift toward sustained economic pressure as Washington considers its subsequent actions in the conflict.
Undoubtedly, Donald Trump likes to project the image of a strong president who fully exercises the powers granted to him under the US Constitution. As commander-in-chief of the armed forces, he may initiate a military operation but must formally notify Congress within 48 hours. In the case of the Iran war, he did do this on time, on March 2.
But now a second deadline is approaching: A military operation is only permitted to last 60 days without the approval of the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the two bodies that make up Congress. That deadline expires on May 1.
I observe that to date, the absence of any solution to the war has not been negotiated between Washington and Tehran; the president will have to take further steps to legitimize this military operation against Iran.
In accordance with the law, the president could extend the original 60-day period once, by an additional 30 days, particularly to allow for an orderly withdrawal of troops.
I observe that the current scenario of the Iran war has turned into a massive challenge for President Trump as this generates a plethora of questions on legality of his power to prolong blockage of Iran further without seeking any approval of the Congress while a majority of the members are not in favor of continuity of this war, which was initiated by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, and supported by President Trump.
I feel that now, President Trump could not argue that there has been progress made on the Iran war, as he himself cancelled the trip of his envoys to meet Iranian delegates in Islamabad a few days back, signaling a difficult situation for Trump to use his power to extend this block of Iran for an additional 30-day period.
However, if the situation in the Strait of Hormuz continues to escalate and the ceasefire is severely and persistently violated, the next 30 days will become even more controversial than they already are.
Now, I find that the reason for the president's poor approval ratings is the high cost of living, further exacerbated by a steep increase in fuel prices due to the Iran war. Even within Trump's typically unified MAGA base, there has been loud criticism of the war. The pressure on the president is therefore enormous to find a face-saving solution before the midterms - regardless of how Congress is ultimately involved.
On Wednesday, the US dollar Index has gained significant strength on apparent deadlock in talks between the U.S. and Iran, as well as a raft of central bank interest rate decisions this week, while oil prices steadied near a one-month high in choppy trade as markets weighed the impact of the United Arab Emirates' decision to leave the OPEC producer group and ongoing disruptions in the Middle East.
On evaluating the movements of the gold futures on a daily chart, I find that the gold futures are maintaining a 54-degree slide since April 17, 2026, after testing a high at $4,918, look ready to find a breakdown below the next support at $4,400 this week as currently trading below the significant resistance $4,626 while President Trump's decision to prolong blockade of Iran remains under constitutional controversies.
I conclude that the alarming energy Crises could reprise gold prices this week.
Disclaimer: Readers are advised to take any position in gold at their own risk, as this analysis is based only on observations.