See below for reactions (starting early this morning with Sen. Tim Kaine’s and Sen. Mark Warner’s) to Trump’s unauthorized, ergo illegal, military attack against Iran. I’ll add others as they come in. I’d just note, for anyone who actually argued going back to 2016 that Trump was some sort of a “dove” while Hillary Clinton was some sort of “hawk,” that obviously Trump has no problem using violence/lethal force – whether against other countries or even against U.S. citizens. And yes, that should have been glaringly obvious in 2016, 2020, and 2024. Also, note that if we’d elected Hillary Clinton president in 2016, she would NOT have torn up the Iran nuclear agreement; and if we’d elected Kamala Harris in 2024, she would NOT have started a war with Iran. So…no, the two parties are NOT the same. And yes, elections really do have conseequences, including life-or-death ones.
KAINE STATEMENT ON TRUMP’S ILLEGAL WAR WITH IRAN
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, released the following statement regarding the United States’ preemptive attack on Iran:
“Has President Trump learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East? Is he too mentally incapacitated to realize that we had a diplomatic agreement with Iran that was keeping its nuclear program in check, until he ripped it up during his first term?
“For months, I have raised hell about the fact that the American people want lower prices, not more war—especially wars that aren’t authorized by Congress, as required by the Constitution, and don’t have a clear objective. These strikes are a colossal mistake, and I pray they do not cost our sons and daughters in uniform and at embassies throughout the region their lives. The Senate should immediately return to session and vote on my War Powers Resolution to block the use of U.S. forces in hostilities against Iran. Every single Senator needs to go on the record about this dangerous, unnecessary, and idiotic action.”
Video of Kaine’s speech on the Senate floor this week about his bipartisan Iran War Powers Resolution is available here.
Kaine has been a leading voice against unauthorized wars during his time in the Senate. Last June, the Senate voted on a similar War Powers Resolution introduced by Kaine to prevent the use of military force against Iran unless explicitly authorized by Congress. The June resolution gained bipartisan support but did not receive enough votes to advance. In January, Kaine forced a vote on his bipartisan War Powers Resolution on Venezuela, which gained enough Republican support to advance but was then sidestepped by Republican leadership to avoid losing further votes.
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STATEMENT OF SENATE INTELLIGENCE VICE CHAIR MARK R. WARNER
~ On U.S. military action in Iran ~
WASHINGTON – U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), Vice Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement on President Donald Trump’s announcement of wide-ranging military strikes inside Iran:
“Overnight, the president conducted expansive U.S. strikes – not limited to nuclear or missile infrastructure but extending to a broad set of targets, including senior Iranian leadership – marking a deeply consequential decision that risks pulling the United States into another broad conflict in the Middle East.
“Iran’s leadership has long supported terrorism across the region, undermined regional stability, continued to advance its nuclear ambitions, and brutally repressed its own people. But acknowledging those realities does not relieve any president of the responsibility to act within the law, with a clear strategy, and with Congress.
“The American people have seen this playbook before – claims of urgency, misrepresented intelligence, and military action that pulls the United States into regime change and prolonged, costly nation-building. We owe it to our service members, and to every American family, to ensure that we are not repeating the mistakes of the past. The president owes the country clear answers: What is the objective? What is the strategy to prevent escalation? And how does this make Americans safer?
“By the president’s own words, ‘American heroes may be lost.’ That alone should have demanded the highest level of scrutiny, deliberation, and accountability, yet the president moved forward without seeking congressional authorization. The Constitution is clear: the decision to take this nation to war rests with Congress, and launching large-scale military operations – particularly in the absence of an imminent threat to the United States – raises serious legal and constitutional concerns. Congress must be fully briefed, and the administration must come forward with a clear legal justification, a defined end state, and a plan that avoids dragging the United States into yet another costly and unnecessary war.”
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Walkinshaw Statement on Trump Administration’s Strikes on Iran
Fairfax, VA – Congressman James R. Walkinshaw, a member of the House Committees on Oversight and Government Reform and Homeland Security, and the subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs, released the following statement on the Trump Administration’s strikes on Iran.
“The American people want and need affordable health care and lower grocery prices, not another war in the Middle East that risks the lives of young Americans.
I condemn the Iranian regime’s repression, hostility toward its neighbors, support for terrorism around the world, and ambitions to develop nuclear weapons. But the President has presented no evidence of an imminent threat to the United States and no plan to prevent escalation.
Once again, President Trump has ignored the Constitution and engaged in an act of war without Congressional authorization. Both the House and Senate should convene immediately to debate and pass a War Powers Resolution to rein in this out of control President and remove the United States from hostilities in Iran.
Today, we pray for our brave men and women in uniform and for all in harm’s way.”
