Does Secretary of State Mike Pompeo understand the basics of the Constitution? Given his odd statements over the previous few weeks, you wouldn’t be the only one to ask this question.

During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on April 10, Pompeo suggested that the 18-year-old authorization for the use of military force against al Qaeda and the Taliban could be used as legal cover for a hypothetical military attack on Iran. The query was initiated by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who was dumbfounded at Pompeo’s unwillingness to admit the obvious: No, an authorization against al Qaeda does not permit the Trump administration to start dropping bombs on Tehran.