Lmst

I would love to see the JCOS hand Trump and Hegseth over to the Hague.
#venezuela
#caribbean
#offshoremurder
#militaryviolations
#extrajudicialkillings
#warpowersact

Headline: "Pete Hegseth Orders 21st 'Lethal' Strike on Suspected Drug Boat, Kills 'Three Male Narco-Terrorists'."

Except that he presented no evidence that they were Narco-Terrorists.
With 21 deadly attacks, for no apparent reason, Hegseth and Trump are looking like terrorists.
#unjustified #murder #WarPowersAct.

Venezuelans That US Sent to El Salvador Mega-Prison Faced Torture, Sexual Abuse

CECOT is “where people are sent for permanent punishment and separation,” says a human rights advocate.

https://murica.website/2025/11/venezuelans-that-us-sent-to-el-salvador-mega-prison-faced-torture-sexual-abuse/

Sunday Reads

Good Afternoon!!

Many thanks to JJ for writing the post yesterday. My internet was out for close to 24 hours. I could still access the internet from my phone, but I really missed TV. I usually have it on MSNBC with sound muted so I will know what’s happening in news and politics. That’s the longest cable outage I’ve experienced in years.

The same horrible news was happening when the TV came back on. I don’t know why I keep watching it. Lately I’ve been trying to distract myself by watching streaming shows on Netflix and HBO/MAX. I really enjoyed “Task” and “Mare of Easttown.” Right now I’m having fun watching Dept Q. My biggest problem with these shows is that I have trouble stopping myself from just binging all the episodes at once.

Anyway, here are the latest happenings that caught my attention this morning.

Here in Boston, there was an explosion at Harvard Medical School.

The Harvard Crimson: Authorities Investigating Explosion at Harvard Medical School, Believed To Be Intentional.

A view of the Harvard Medical School in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Photograph Brian SnyderReuters

A device exploded inside the Goldenson Building in Harvard’s Longwood medical campus early Saturday morning, according to a message from the Harvard University Police Department to University affiliates.
The Boston Fire Department Arson Unit responded to the incident and determined the explosion to be intentional.
The explosion took place on an area of the fourth floor of Goldenson, a Harvard Medical School building on the school’s main quad. An officer who responded shortly before 3 a.m. observed two individuals fleeing the building, according to the email sent by HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano this afternoon.
HUPD sent a subsequent email to Harvard affiliates shortly after 5 p.m. asking for assistance identifying two men, who they described as suspects. The images were captured on security footage.
Both men are shown wearing sweatshirts with hoods and ski masks.
The Boston Police Department performed a sweep of the building and determined there were no additional devices in the building. No injuries were reported in relation to the incident….
HUPD is actively investigating the incident with local, state, and federal authorities. The FBI was on scene Saturday afternoon assisting HUPD, according to FBI spokesperson Kristen M. Setera.

NBC News: ‘Intentional’ explosion at Harvard medical campus under investigation.

Police are investigating an “intentional” explosion at a Harvard University medical building early Saturday morning.

Surveillance views of suspects in Harvard Medical School explosion

A fire alarm at the Goldenson Building, part of Harvard’s medical campus in Boston, went off at 2:48 a.m. A Harvard University Police Department officer who responded to the call saw two “unidentified individuals fleeing from the building,” Harvard police said in a statement….
The university released photos on Saturday evening of two individuals captured on CCTV footage. One was depicted wearing a balaclava, and the other wearing a hoodie with the hood raised and a face covering.
The university asked for the public’s help in identifying the individuals.

Trump appears to be itching to start a war.

Strikes on fishing boats in international waters continuing regularly. The latest from NBC News: U.S. military kills 3 in Caribbean boat strike, Hegseth says.

U.S. forces carried out a strike on another suspected drug boat in international waters, killing all three people on board, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said late Saturday.
He said the boat was in the Caribbean Sea and was known by U.S. intelligence as a drug-smuggling vessel. The three males on board were described as “narco-terrorists” associated with a “Designated Terrorist Organization,” Hegseth said.
“This vessel—like EVERY OTHER—was known by our intelligence to be involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, was transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics,” Hegseth said in a post on his X account, which did not include any evidence for the claims….
The strike is at least the 15th since early September against vessels and crews in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific that the Trump administration has claimed were involved with drug trafficking. At least 64 people have been killed in the strikes, according to official estimates.
Hegseth claimed that boats like the one struck in the Caribbean are part of an effort by narco-terrorists to “poison Americans at home” and reiterated his policy to treat the alleged smugglers “EXACTLY how we treated Al-Qaeda,” he said.
“We will continue to track them, map them, hunt them, and kill them,” Hegseth said.

I think they are lying. Until I see/hear some evidence, I’m going to assume these are just fishing boats.

Ellen Nakashima and Noah Robertson at The Washington Post: Trump administration tells Congress war law doesn’t apply to cartel strikes.

A top Justice Department lawyer has told lawmakers that the Trump administration can continue its lethal strikes against alleged drug traffickers in Latin America — and is not bound by a decades-old law requiring Congress to give approval for ongoing hostilities.
T. Elliot Gaiser, head of the Trump administration’s Office of Legal Counsel, made his remarks to a small group of lawmakers this week amid signs that the president may be planning to escalate the military campaign in the region, including potentially hitting targets within Venezuela.

One of Trump’s murderous “drug boat” strikes

The president needs lawmakers’ approval for sustained military action under the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which was passed in the wake of the Vietnam War to prevent another drawn-out, undeclared conflict.
A 60-day clock started ticking after the administration informed Congress on Sept. 4 that it had conducted a strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean two days earlier. It has followed that with other strikes and has killed dozens of people.

The 60-day window closes Monday, and until now it had been unclear what the administration would do.
Gaiser said the administration didnot believe the strikes met the definition of hostilities under the law and did not intend to seek an extension of the deadline nor Congress’s approval of ongoing action, according to three people familiar with the matter, who, like others interviewed for this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
“The administration appears to be blowing through the 60-day limit,” a senior congressional aide said.

What’s their explanation?

Asked for comment, a senior administration official said the War Powers Resolution did not pertain to the current situation, because, “even at its broadest … [it] has been understood to apply to placing U.S. service-members in harm’s way.”

The official said the administration does not believe U.S. troops are in danger in the ongoing operation, so the law did not apply.“The operation comprises precise strikes conducted largely by unmanned aerial vehicles launched from naval vessels in international waters at distances too far away for the crews of the targeted vessels to endanger American personnel,” the official said in an email.

US warship docks in Trinidad and Tobago as Trump steps up military pressure on Venezuela.

In essence, the official said, “the kinetic operations underway do not rise to the level of ‘hostilities.’”

National security experts challenged the administration’s interpretation.

“What they’re saying is anytime the president uses drones or any standoff weapon against someone who cannot shoot back, it’s not hostilities‚” said Brian Finucane, a former legal adviser to the State Department who is now a senior adviser for the U.S. program at the International Crisis Group. “It’s a wild claim of executive authority.”

If the government ignores the Monday deadline, he said, “it is usurping Congress’s authority over the use of military force.” Under the Constitution, only Congress can declare war.

Trump couldn’t care less about the War Powers Act or any other law.

Júlia Ledur and Susannah George at The Washington Post (gift link): These are the U.S. ships and aircraft massing off Venezuela.

The large-scale buildup of U.S. military forces and assets in the Caribbean suggests that the Trump administration may be preparing to expand operations in the region, escalating tensions between Washington and Caracas and raising the possibility of the first U.S. strikes on Venezuela.

U.S. forces in the Caribbean include eight Navy warships, a special operations vessel and a nuclear-powered attack submarine. When the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford arrives in the Caribbean next week, it will bring with it three more warships and more than 4,000 additional troops.
President Donald Trump has indicated that he is planning for increased operations against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, but when asked on Friday whether he is considering military strikes inside Venezuela, he replied “no.”

Use the gift link to view graphic depictions of the U.S. military buildup in near Venezuela.

In addition to the Naval buildup, the Pentagon has flown bombers along Venezuela’s coastline in a show of force and moved assets to U.S. bases in the area, including one in Puerto Rico that is now housing F-35 fighter jets, according to Washington Post analysis of satellite images.

The Pentagon has acknowledged carrying out more than a dozen strikes on alleged drug boats, killing at least 61 people since September.

From the beginning, the Pentagon’s buildup in the Caribbean has far exceeded what was needed for a counternarcotics operation, suggesting the mission was always “set to evolve,” said Ryan Berg, the director of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic & International Studies.
But Berg said the addition of the carrier strike group could indicate that the expanded operations are imminent. “The competition for these vessels is tremendous,” he said, because only three are deployed at any one time. Once the Ford arrives in the Caribbean next week, “It’s going to start a clock ticking and Trump will have about a month or so to make a major decision on a strike before he has to move” the vessel elsewhere.

More details at the NBC link.

CBS News: CBS News poll finds rising concern over government shutdown impact on economy, Americans personally.

Americans are increasingly voicing concern about the shutdown’s impact on the U.S. economy, as a big majority feel Congress isn’t even working to try to end it.
There’s also increased worry from people over being personally affected, particularly among those with lower incomes, along with that concern about national impact.
Politically, that means no one is “winning” overall: Congressional Democrats, Republicans and President Trump are all drawing increasingly negative marks for their handling of it as it has gone on.
Democrats express more concern over the economic impact than Republicans do.
Other governmental functions, including air travel, also draw concern due to the shutdown.
Most disapprove of how all the players involved are handling it, and those views have become a bit more negative over October, the month when the shutdown began.

Again, read more at the link

Politico: New poll shows what Americans think of America, and it’s not great.

America’s brand is fading from within.
In a bitterly divided country, pessimism and cynicism reign supreme: Two-thirds of Americans say it is at least probably true that the government often deliberately lies to the people. That distrust cuts across partisan lines: Strong majorities of Donald Trump voters (64 percent) and Kamala Harris voters (70 percent) agree.

Is the American dream dead?

Nearly half of Americans, 49 percent, say that the best times of the country are behind them, according to The POLITICO Poll by Public First. That’s greater than the 41 percent who said the best times lie ahead, underscoring a pervasive sense of unease about both individuals’ own futures and the national direction.
The exclusive new poll, conducted nearly one year after Trump’s reelection, reveals a deep strain of pessimism across the electorate — but especially for Democrats.
People who voted for Harris last year are twice as likely as Trump voters to say the United States’ best times are in the past.
America, as a country, is like “someone who is feeling lost, confused, or beat up … or uncertain of what to do, and looking around and saying this isn’t right, this isn’t the way,” said Maury Giles, the CEO of Braver Angels, a nonprofit that works to bridge partisan divides.

Sounds about right. Read the rest at Politico.

News about Trump’s health

Trump recently admitted he had an MRI when during his second “yearly checkup” at Walter Reid. He also disappeared for 6 days around Labor Day, then appeared at the 9/11 ceremony with the right side of his face drooping. What’s going on?

Nathaniel Weitzel at The Hill: Trump’s MRI scan raises specter of secrecy in presidential health.

President Trump’s off-the-cuff disclosure that he underwent an MRI scan is raising fresh questions about the secrecy surrounding Trump’s health and the need for presidents to be more transparent.
Trump is the oldest person to be elected president, and his aides and allies have long projected him as the picture of strength and vitality.
Outside physicians initially raised questions after Trump visited Walter Reed Military Medical Center earlier this month for what the White House described as a routine follow-up visit, though it was his second visit in six months.
A note from his physician pronounced Trump in “excellent overall health.”
Later, Trump disclosed that he underwent an MRI and a cognitive test during the secondary physical.

The Hill talked to a former White House doctor:

Jeffrey Kuhlman, who served as a White House physician to three presidents and wrote a book about his experience called “Transforming Presidential Healthcare,” said he wasn’t surprised a 79-year-old man needed a second checkup and that it’s typical for presidents to go to Walter Reed for advanced imaging.

Trump’s drooping face on 9/11

“Most any procedure scope, I had the capabilities there at the White House. The only thing I couldn’t, that I’d have to Walter Reed for, is advanced imaging,” Kuhlman said.
But Kuhlman questioned the timeline of the treatment that was released by Trump’s physician Sean Barbabella. Aside from the MRI, other testing and preventive health screening could have been done in the White House doctor’s office in less than 15 minutes.
“It’s about an eight-minute helicopter ride from the South Lawn to Walter Reed. So we know that he at least had four hours available to undergo medical care,” Kuhlman said.
“There’s a disconnect there.”

There certainly is. Read the rest at The Hill, including the long history of lies about various presidents’ health.

At Raw Story, a second doctor opines about the significance of Trump’s MRI: ‘Not routine’: Doctor highlights major questions after Trump reveals MRI.

President Donald Trump revealed Monday that he had undergone an MRI scan during a recent checkup at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center but has remained tight-lipped about what prompted the examination, leading to one medical expert raising serious questions as to the president’s health.
“It’s not part of a routine screening examination,” said Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a CNN medical analyst who’s certified in interventional cardiology and internal medicine, speaking on the network Monday.
“There’s been really a lack of candor coming from the White House about this,” Reiner added. “When they announced that the president would visit Walter Reed at the beginning of this month, they initially said it was for his annual checkup, but when they were reminded that that’s not due until April, they said ‘okay, it’s for a routine semi-annual checkup.’”
Trump revealed the surprise medical visit while aboard Air Force One on his way to Japan and called the MRI scan he received “perfect.” At 79 years old, Trump is the second-oldest president to ever hold office – behind only former President Joe Biden – with questions having been raised about his health after photographs of his hands and ankles have shown bruising and swelling, respectively….
“The big question is what prompted his MRI?” Reiner said. “What symptoms were they concerned about, what particular type of MRI was performed? Was it a brain MRI, was it a cardiac MRI, was it an MRI of the spine, of his prostate… what prompted the concern that would take him in a relatively unscheduled way to Walter Reed for this testing?”
“Why won’t they tell us exactly what was tested, why the testing was performed, and the results?” the physician added. “I think without that, there’s really no trust. Just tell the public what’s going on with the president!”

And these two doctors aren’t even dealing with the danger of Trump’s obvious cognitive issues.

More stories of possible interest:

The Washington Post: Uncertainty hits after vulnerable Americans woke up to a SNAP freeze.

The New York Times: Food Stamp Cuts Expose Trump’s Strategy to Use Shutdown to Advance Agenda.

Forbes: As Open Enrollment Begins, Data Show A 30% Increase In Obamacare Premiums.

Chicago Tribune: Border Patrol’s strong-arm tactics are the new norm in Chicago as Trump moves to sideline ICE leadership.

The Guardian: Trump policies loom large over New Jersey’s unpredictable governor’s race.

The Hill: Spanberger leads Earle-Sears in Virginia, AG race a toss-up: Poll.

That’s it for me today. What’s on your mind?

#allegedDrugSmuggling #BostonMedicalSchoolExplosion #DonaldTrump #fishingBoatDroneStrikes #militaryBuildupInTheCaribbean #Nigeria #politicalPolls #TrumpMRI #TrumpPossibleStroke #TrumpSHealth #Venezuela #WarPowersAct

Letters from an American – November 1, 2025 – by Heather Cox Richardson

Letters from an American, November 1, 2025

By Heather Cox Richardson, Nov 01, 2025

Yesterday I wrote that President Donald J. Trump’s celebration of his new marble bathroom in the White House was so tone deaf at a time when federal employees are working without pay, furloughed workers are taking out bank loans to pay their bills, healthcare premiums are skyrocketing, and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are at risk, that it seemed likely to make the history books as a symbol of this administration.

But that image got overtaken just hours later by pictures from a Great Gatsby–themed party Trump threw at Mar-a-Lago last night hours before SNAP benefits ended. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby skewered the immoral and meaningless lives of the very wealthy during the Jazz Age who spent their time throwing extravagant parties and laying waste to the lives of the people around them.

Although two federal judges yesterday found that the administration’s refusal to use reserves Congress provided to fund SNAP in an emergency was likely illegal and one ordered the government to use that money, the administration did not immediately do as the judge ordered.

Trump posted on social media that “[o]ur Government lawyers do not think we have the legal authority to pay SNAP,” so he has “instructed our lawyers to ask the Court to clarify how we can legally fund SNAP as soon as possible.” Blaming the Democrats for the shutdown, Trump added that “even if we get immediate guidance, it will unfortunately be delayed while States get the money out.” His post provided the phone number for Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer’s office, telling people: “If you use SNAP benefits, call the Senate Democrats, and tell them to reopen the Government, NOW!”

“They were careless people,” Fitzgerald wrote, “they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together, and let other people clean up the mess they had made.”

This afternoon, Ellen Nakashima and Noah Robertson of the Washington Post reported that the administration is claiming it does not have to consult Congress to continue its attacks on Venezuela. The 1973 War Powers Act says it does.

In 1973, after President Richard M. Nixon ordered secret bombings of Cambodia during the Vietnam War, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution to reassert its power over foreign wars. “It is the purpose of this joint resolution to fulfill the intent of the framers of the Constitution of the United States and insure that the collective judgment of both the Congress and the President will apply to the introduction of United States Armed Forces into hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, and to the continued use of such forces in hostilities or in such situations,” it read.

The law requires a president to notify Congress in writing within 48 hours of the start of hostilities, including the legal grounds for those hostilities, the circumstances that caused them, and an estimate of their scope and duration. The law requires the president to get the approval of Congress for any hostilities lasting more than 60 days.

On September 4, 2025, Trump notified Congress of a strike against a vessel in the Caribbean that he said “was assessed to be affiliated with a designated terrorist organization and to be engaged in illicit drug trafficking activities.” The letter added: “I am providing this report as part of my efforts to keep the Congress fully informed, consistent with the War Powers Resolution.”

Monday will mark 60 days from that announcement, but the administration does not appear to be planning to ask for Congress’s approval. It has been reluctant to share information about the strikes, first excluding senior Senate Democrats from a Senate briefing, then offering House members a briefing that did not include lawyers and failed to answer basic questions. The top two leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Jack Reed (D-RI), have both said the administration has not produced documents, attack orders, and a list of targets required by law.

Continue/Read Original Article Here: November 1, 2025 – by Heather Cox Richardson

#2025 #America #Caribbean #Congress #DonaldTrump #Education #FScottFitzgerald #Health #History #Hostilities #HungryAmericans #Libraries #Library #LibraryOfCongress #Murder #Opinion #Politics #Reading #Resistance #Science #SNAP #Substack #TheWashingtonPost #Trump #TrumpAdministration #UnitedStates #Venezuela #WarPowersAct

Senators Launch a Bipartisan Bid to Block Possible Trump War on Venezuela

This comes as two survivors of the US’s most recent drone strike on a boat have reportedly been detained by US forces.

https://murica.website/2025/10/senators-launch-a-bipartisan-bid-to-block-possible-trump-war-on-venezuela/

“Give us the evidence that these boats were carrying drugs. Why did you decide to attack rather than interdict?” 25 senators wrote to the president asking about the operations in the Caribbean. “They’ve not answered & that’s likely to lead to War Powers Resolution.” ~Sen Tim Kaine #WarPowersAct

Another foreseen outcome of the #warpowersact and continuation of Congress ceding its authority. https://masto.ai/@Nonilex/115231396222794706

The Convicted-Felon-in-Chief ordering summary executions is on par with former Philippine President Duterte, who is awaiting trial by the International Criminal Court.
#fascist #GOPFail
#FuckTrump
#NoKings #WarPowersAct https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/04/trumps-killing-alleged-venezuelan-drug-traffickers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

April Ryan and Rep. Meeks on the. Executive's authority to wage war in #Iran: "We've all have taken oaths of office, not to an individual, but to a #Constitution"

#GregoryMeeks #Iran #NewYork #trump #war #warpowersact #congress #TheContrarian
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/april-ryan-and-rep-meeks-on-the-executives

Eightysix47

: #bigviciousbill #democrats #joemorelle #mikejohnson #uspol #uspolitics #warpowersact :

Mike Johnson Suggests War Powers Act Is Unconstitutional

Presidents must issue reports on every military action within two days — something Trump didn’t do with the Iran strike.

https://voices.murica.website/?p=24988

THIS IS DAMNED CONVENIENT FOR MIKE JOHNSON WHEN THE PRESIDENT HE BOWS TO HAS BOMBED ANOTHER COUNTRY WITHOUT CONSULTING OR EVEN NOTIFYING CONGRESS
Mastodon Post

Eightysix47

: #bigviciousbill #democrats #donaldtrump #eightysix47 #iran #mikejohnson #uspol #uspolitics #warpowersact :

Dan Mangan, Christina Wilkie, Spencer Kimball, Laya Neelakandan, and Erin Doherty highlight a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran, announced by Trump, amid a backdrop of resumed hostilities. With Congress demanding clarity on Iran's nuclear activities and the legality of Trump's strikes, tensions rise. Experts warn of a complex geopolitical landscape involving major world powers. For deeper insights, read the full article: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/24/israel-iran-ceasefire-live-updates-trump.html #IsraelIranCeasefire #DonaldTrump #MiddleEastConflict #USForeignPolicy #OilPrices #WarPowersAct

#TrumpLied & Unilaterally Takes the Country into Another Mideast War #ABlueView🧵1/3

#WarPowersAct

#Members of #US #Congress have filed a #WarPowersAct to try to stop Trump from getting the US into Israel's #war with #iran https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rqD0pExB_g

Dear Democrats,

Add this to the growing pile of impeachment charges against Trump. Thank you for your attention to this matter. #impeachtrump #warpowersact

The War Powers Resolution, which Mr. Kaine, Mr. Massie and Mr. Khanna are trying to employ,
was passed in the waning years of Vietnam,
when another lawless president,
Richard Nixon, tried to use the cover of war to subvert the Constitution.

Mr. Schumer and Mr. Jeffries are their party’s leaders;

if they won’t fight for the War Powers Resolution now
— when the most lawless president in modern American history is contemplating waging a lawless war
— then they’re not serious about defending America’s constitutional order in its moment of peril.

Failing to aggressively defend Congress’s role in authorizing war would be political malpractice for Democrats.

On foreign policy, Mr. Trump has never been more politically vulnerable.

In 2016 and 2024, his pledge to keep the United States out of foreign wars proved crucial to his appeal.

Now he could be close to breaking that promise,
despite clear opposition from Americans of both major parties.

And some of his most influential supporters are accusing him of betrayal.

By failing to adequately push back against Trump,
Mr. Schumer and Mr. Jeffries are not only alienating an already alienated Democratic base -- They’re squandering a unique opportunity to lure part of the MAGA coalition to their side.

On the 20th anniversary of America’s invasion of Iraq, Mr. Schumer offered something of an apology for supporting that war in 2002.

“With the luxury of hindsight,” he said,
“it’s clear that the president bungled the war from start to finish
and should not have ever been given that benefit.”

He pledged to learn from his mistake by
“putting the war powers back where they belong
— in the hands of Congress.”

Now, with the United States on the verge of what might be its most disastrous military adventure since it toppled Saddam Hussein,
it’s time for Mr. Schumer to fulfill that promise.

So far, he’s showing that he hasn’t learned much at all.

#WarPowersAct #Iran

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/opinion/trump-iran-war-schumer-jeffries.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Since Democrats are in the minority in both chambers, they can’t force a vote on authorizing war.

But Schumer and Jeffries could help lead a full-throated public campaign in support of one.

They haven’t done that.

In a statement with other senators five days after Israel’s attack, Schumer finally declared that
“by law, the president must consult Congress and seek authorization if he is considering taking the country to war.”

But he still isn’t backing legislation to give that principle teeth.

And Jeffries has made no public statements on the subject.

Given the gravity of this moment, Democratic leaders should be holding news conferences,
addressing mass protests,
even bringing Congress to a standstill with all-night filibusters in order to prevent an unauthorized, unjustified war.

The public is deeply weary of conflict.

And yet top Democrats are not boldly rallying them against the possibility of another.

This is a serious blunder.

It’s a foreign policy blunder because Iran
— a corrupt and brutal regime interested primarily in staying in power
— poses no more of a direct threat to the United States than Iraq did nearly a quarter-century ago.

An American strike on the Islamic republic would probably violate international law
and further erode whatever credibility the United States has left -- when it criticizes Chinese aggression toward Taiwan or Russian aggression toward Ukraine.

American intervention in Iran could also fracture the country,
as the United States did when it bombed Iraq and Libya
— in both cases creating greater dangers than existed before.

In addition, both Republicans and Democrats should realize that yielding the right to authorize war to the president alone has costs that go beyond foreign policy.

For at least 50 years, historians have noted that wars expand presidential power.

In peacetime, Mr. Trump has had to invent national emergencies to justify his authoritarian power grabs,
like sending the Marines to Los Angeles.

It’s terrifying to think what he might do if America is actually at war.
#WarPowersAct #Iran

On many issues, Americans are deeply polarized.

War with Iran isn’t one of them.

An Economist/YouGov poll of U.S. adults taken in the days after Israel’s attack last Friday found that Democrats opposed entering the conflict by a margin of 50 points and Republicans opposed entering it by a margin of 30 points.

Given these numbers, you might think Democratic leaders would be doing everything they can to prevent President Trump from striking Iran without the approval of Congress.

Sadly, they’re not.

More than 20 years ago, powerful Washington Democrats acceded too timidly to a catastrophic Middle Eastern war.

Now they’re at risk of doing so again.
From the moment Israel struck Iran,
it was obvious the United States might be sucked in.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had made it clear he wanted Washington to join Israel in attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities.

And on the day of the first attack, when Tehran retaliated by launching missiles at the Jewish state,
the United States helpedshoot them down.

Despite this, the initial statements by the Democrats’ leader in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, and their House leader, Hakeem Jeffries, said nothing about the need for Congress to authorize war.

As the days passed and news reports suggested that Trump was edging toward entering the fray, Senator Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, invoked the War Powers Act to require the president to gain congressional permission.

Thomas Massie, a Republican, and Ro Khanna, a Democrat, proposed something similar in the House.
#WarPowersAct #Iran

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/opinion/trump-iran-war-schumer-jeffries.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

#WarPowersAct

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