Washington: House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has accused President Donald Trump of plunging the United States into an “unlawful war of choice” against Iran, saying the administration has failed to justify the conflict or seek congressional authorisation.
In an interview on CNN’s The Story Is with Elex Michaelson, Jeffries said the president had not explained why the United States launched a preemptive strike against Iran.
“The President has failed to articulate a compelling reason for why the United States preemptively struck Iran and has now plunged us into a war of choice, where billions of dollars are being spent to drop bombs in the Middle East,” Jeffries told the news channel.
He added that the conflict has already spread across the region.
“In fact, the entire region is in flames right now,” Jeffries said.
Jeffries acknowledged that Iran has long been considered hostile to the United States but argued that military conflict should not proceed without congressional debate.
“Iran is definitely a bad actor and needs to be aggressively confronted, and there are a variety of different tools to be able to do that, including aggressive diplomacy or making sure that the sanctions regime continues to tighten,” he said.
But he said the Constitution gives Congress the authority to decide on war.
“But on matters of war and peace, I mean, the framers were very clear. They gave Congress the sole authority to declare war, understanding that it’s a serious thing when we decide to put our servicemen and women in harm’s way,” Jeffries said.
Jeffries also noted that American service members have already died in the conflict.
“We’ve already lost seven heroic, patriotic, brave service members. And certainly it’s the case that our heart goes out to them and our prayers continue to be with them,” he said.
The Democratic leader said the administration has not provided clear objectives or an end strategy for the war.
“This is an all-out war against Iran that now involves more than a dozen different countries and the expenditure of billions of dollars, perhaps a day, to drop bombs in the Middle East without a clear objective, a clear strategy or a clear endgame,” Jeffries said.
Jeffries said Democrats had supported a War Powers Resolution aimed at limiting hostilities until Congress debates the conflict.
“These types of hostilities should cease until there’s an actual debate and the President makes his case to Congress and to the American people and seeks the authorisation for the use of military force,” he said.
IANS
EAM Jaishankar speaks to Iranian counterpart amid escalating West Asia conflict
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar engaged in a detailed telephone conversation this evening with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, focusing on the latest developments in the...
Skipper Kohli is improving by the day: Shastri
By Baidurjo Bhose Jan 1, 2020 New Delhi:A brilliant 2019 done with, 2020 is the year of the World T20. But before that comes the Kiwi challenge for Team India...
Hardik announces engagement with Serbian actress Natasa
Mumbai, Jan 1 (IANS) India all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Wednesday announced his engagement with Serbian actress Natasa Stankovic via a social media post. "Mai tera, Tu meri jaane, saara Hindustan...
India leads porn consumption on smartphones in 2019
Jan 1, 2019 New Delhi: As smartphone penetration increases by leaps and bounds in India, porn consumption has reached its zenith too. A new report has revealed that in India,...
Kohli-led India capable of winning all ICC tournaments: Lara
Jan 2, 2019 New Delhi: Batting great Brian Lara believes that the Virat Kohli-led Indian side is well capable of winning all ICC tournaments they play. The former Windies skipper...
Most of countries have accepted CAA-NRC is India’s internal matter: MEA
Jan 2, 2019 New Delhi: India has made a strong outreach to countries across the world to clear their misperception about the Citienship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register...
Manav on top of world in u-21 Tennis
New Delhi, 03 January : Title-win at the ITTF Challenge Plus Canada Open in Markham has catapulted Manav Thakkar to the World No. 1 position in Under-21 category according...
Trump puts India in a bind over Iran
By Aarti Tikoo Singh Jan 4, 2020 New Delhi/Washington: US President Donald Trump's claim that the slain Iranian military commander and intelligence chief Major General Qassem Soleimani was responsible for...
In Kashmir, football is a great leveller
Jan 4, 2020 Srinagar: The I-League made its much-awaited return to Srinagar after a gap of 323 days -- with a new season starting over and a lot of changes...
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan calls it a day
Jan 4, 2020 Mumbai: Veteran India bowling all-rounder Irfan Pathan on Saturday decided to hang up his boots and officially announced his decision to retire from all forms of cricket....
