Some of President Donald Trump’s Capitol Hill critics were quick to condemn his administration’s military action against Iran early Saturday, criticizing what they described as an unjustified act of war that hadn’t been approved by Congress.
Shortly after reports of the attack against Tehran emerged in the predawn hours, frequent Trump-basher Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) characterized the strikes on social media as “acts of war unauthorized by Congress.”
Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) had planned to force votes next week on legislation that would curb Trump’s ability to take unilateral military action against Iran without congressional approval. But the U.S.’ Saturday morning strikes came before the bipartisan pair was able to compel a war powers vote.
One of the first Democrats to respond to the strikes, Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), condemned the attack on social media, writing that “we can support the democracy movement and the Iranian people without sending our troops to die.”
In a Saturday morning video announcing the strike, Trump warned “the lives of courageous American heroes may be lost and we may have casualties. That often happens in war, but we’re doing this for the future.” It’s unclear if there were casualties.
Other lawmakers, including longtime Iran hawk Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) rejoiced at the joint U.S.-Israel operation, calling it “necessary and long justified.”
“The end of the largest state sponsor of terrorism is upon us,” Graham wrote on social media. “Freedom for the long suffering Iranian people.” The South Carolina senator has repeatedly encouraged military action against Iran, urging Trump to follow through on his January promise to respond with force after the Iranian regime killed thousands of its own citizens during a mass wave of protests.
In a longer post, Graham lauded what he called a “well-planned” operation, though he acknowledged it would be “violent, extensive and I believe, at the end of the day, successful.” Graham also deliberated on what he predicted would be the fall of the nearly 50-year old Islamic Republic, arguing that “the likelihood of normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel getting back on track is exceedingly high.”