Democratic leadership told Donald Trump to his face that they aren’t going to let him “bumble” the United States into an Iraq-style war in the Middle East.
Democratic leader in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, said that when his party met with Trump in the Situation Room on Thursday, they told him that Congress isn’t going to fund “a war that nobody wants” in Iran.
“The president may not intend to go to war here, but we’re worried that … the administration may bumble into a war,” Schumer said, according to The Hill.
“We told the room that the Democratic position is that congressional approval must be required before funding any conflict in Iran,” the Democratic leader added. “One of the best ways to avoid bumbling into a war, a war that nobody wants, is to have a robust open debate and for Congress to have a real say.”
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“We learned that lesson in the run-up to Iraq,” Schumer said.
Democrats propose legislation to stop Trump from starting a war in Iran
To underscore just how concerned Democrats are that Trump is dragging America into another deadly and seemingly endless military conflict in the Middle East, two Democratic senators are proposing legislation that cut the president off at the knees if he tries to unilaterally start a war.
Sens. Tim Kaine of Virginia and Tom Udall of New Mexico are sponsoring an amendment that would bar any funding for military actions against Iran unless Congress explicitly authorizes it.
In the run-up to the Iraq war, the Bush administration misled Congress into authorizing a war that – we all now know – should have never been waged. It will forever be a stain on American foreign policy.
Democrats appear to have learned the tragic lessons of Iraq. As Trump and his Republican allies in Congress talk up another war in the Middle East, it’s unclear whether they have.
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Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
