Hold Republicans Responsible for the Iran Disaster
Where Democrats go from here — plus, Dems defy 'hot takes' in yesterday's primaries.
BREAKING NEWS : Primary results
In competitive, highly anticipated primaries Tuesday, Democrats defied “hot takes” and bad punditry, showing that (boring but true!) better candidates beat worse ones and Democrats are coalescing around a theme of economic populism with broad appeal.
Wisconsin Democrats apparently decided (barely) not to roll the dice on Democratic Socialist Francesca Hong (who sported a boatload of extreme statements from her past, had not mustered endorsements from progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders, and momentarily whetted Republicans’ appetite for a November free for all). Instead, they followed the lead of Gov. Tony Evers, who helped Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley return to the race he had left and edge out a victory. With a lead of just 3,000 votes, Crowley became the first African American Democratic gubernatorial nominee for the state. Democrats in the quintessential swing state seem to have chosen the pragmatic route to victory in the midterms. (Kudos go to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mandela Barnes, who dropped out to help clear the way for a consensus center-left winner.)
In Minnesota, centrist Amy Klobuchar cruised to the nomination for governor, while progressive superstar Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan trounced her more moderate opponent, becoming the first Native American Senate nominee in the state’s history. In a possible House pickup opportunity, a progressive won in the 2nd Congressional District (Matt Little), while in a stretch/possible red-to-blue flip race in the 1st Congressional District, high school math teacher Jake Johnson won running as a fiscal conservative.
For Republicans, Donald Trump’s clout seems to be fading. His pick, My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell, lost in the Minnesota gubernatorial primary, and his South Carolina designated successor for Sen. Lindsey Graham, his sister Darline, came nowhere near clearing the field or securing a majority in her special election, necessitating a runoff on Aug. 25.
I will have a full report tomorrow, but for now: “Democrats in array, Republicans struggling with Trump endorsements” may be the most fitting takeaway.
As disastrous as Donald Trump’s domestic policies have been — e.g., tariffs, slashing SNAP and healthcare, unleashing rogue shock troops that kill Americans on our streets, corrupting the Justice Department, dismantling life-saving government functions — Iran may be the longest-lasting calamity of his presidency, one that subsequent presidents will be hard-pressed to reverse.
As veteran Middle East negotiator Phil Gordon of Brookings put it:
U.S. acceptance of Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz is an extraordinary outcome only made conceivable by an administration that squandered legitimacy, alienated allies, attempted regime change in a war it had not adequately prepared for and that is being forced to accept a catastrophic outcome without viable alternatives. . . . US and other countries are now being forced to accept an outcome that would have been unthinkable before the war but seems to have become unavoidable because of it.
No clear military solution exists, as is evident from Trump repeatedly threatening to resume fighting, announcing non-existent deals, and then retreating.
Even Trump seems to have given up on the canard that he will restart the war in earnest, given that “the threat to heavily bomb Iran may have been a useful deterrent but is now almost useless because that card has been played,” as Gordon writes. We are viewed as feckless, unreliable, and — now — low on military capacity, so restoring freedom of navigation seems unattainable at this point.
In other words, Iran now gets to dictate terms concerning the Strait of Hormuz to the U.S. and the rest of the world. Iran is going to make money, choking off what was an open international waterway, thanks to Trump’s utter stupidity, rotten judgment, and incompetence. Its financial windfall will allow the Iranians to rebuild their military, including its missile program, reinforce their terrorist networks, and guarantee new stability for the regime Trump vowed to change. And, we will have achieved absolutely no progress in restraining Iran’s nuclear weapons program.
Meanwhile, Trump’s influence in Israel, predictably, has withered. “The Israeli government has rejected a 15-point plan backed by the Trump administration aimed at disarming the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday,” the New York Times reported. “It appeared to be an unusually public break with President Trump, whose relationship with Mr. Netanyahu has had a dizzying and often unpredictable arc.” Trump’s grand “Board of Peace” plan for a phased peace and reconstruction, Netanyahu lets on, never had Israel’s buy-in. The absence of any benefit (other than the potential for continued war that fuels Netanyahu’s rationale for clinging to power) typifies Trump’s utter failure to use leverage to secure outcomes that are attainable and sustainable in the real world. (Trump’s sway with the rest of the region is faring no better, as witnessed by the crumbling of the Abraham Accords structure.)
Trump, his utterly incompetent secretaries of state and defense, and Republican cheerleaders for the war (plus the cadre of right-wing pundits who celebrated the Iran War and kept insisting progress was possible) must bear the blame for a catastrophic outcome.
Democrats can and should hammer home responsibility for this fiasco throughout the campaign. Republicans put unfit, unhinged Pete Hegseth in office and refused to exercise oversight. Republicans gave Trump a blank check. Republicans continue to throw money at a mismanaged, dysfunctional Pentagon, which refuses to conduct an after-action investigation on potential war crimes or accurately account for the injured and dead. The Iran war disaster is a Republican disaster, one that should disqualify the party from holding power.
As Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) declared in a stemwinder in a Black Church in Georgia:
[T]here’s something uniquely despicable about lying a nation into war, treating citizens as fools and the selfless patriots who serve as pawns. Remember earlier this year they claimed there was an imminent nuclear threat after last year they told us they had obliterated that threat? Do you remember that? Both times: lies. On day 12 of this war, the president said quote, “We won.” On day 14, Secretary Hegseth said Iran’s military was quote “destroyed.” Day 14. Five months later, we’re still bombing. Americans are still dying. Iran still has its uranium. The Strait of Hormuz is still closed. I challenge anyone to defend this. A war built on lies told by a White House that is utterly absent [of] any figures of integrity to dissuade this president from his delusions.
It is also a Republican Congress utterly absent of any figures of integrity to dissuade Trump from his delusions.
Beyond the campaign, Democrats would be wise to pursue three responses as they attempt to hold the Trump regime accountable and reverse the horrendous cost to America. Fortunately, the American people overwhelmingly agree with them on the war.
First, once they have control of one or both houses, Democrats must end funding for the illegal war. Full stop. Spending more U.S. taxpayers’ dollars, continuing to divert assets from other parts of the world, risking more lives, and adding to the cost of humanitarian, military, and economic reconstruction would compound the Republican debacle. (In the longer vein, Democrats must lean in to the effort to re-evaluate all military aid to countries in the region and realign our Middle East interests with achievable policy goals.)
Second, serious, exhaustive hearings on the conduct of the war akin to the Fulbright hearings that exposed the lies, duplicity, and blunders associated with the Vietnam War are essential. That entails calling active and retired military personnel to testify under oath, and drawing on bipartisan expertise from prior administrations (including the first Trump term). It will be up to Congress to explain how Trump blundered into war, misled the country, mismanaged the war, and then botched post-hostility negotiations (about which Trump continually lies). Its findings may, in some cases, justify impeachment or criminal referrals for perjury.
Third, if nothing else, Trump’s Iran disaster should prompt a complete revision of the War Powers Act. Given that the Constitution gives Congress the sole power to declare war, it is time to reverse the trend to bestow the president with unilateral control over hard power. After a brief time for the commander in chief to deploy troops in cases of national emergency, Congress’s failure to authorize ongoing deployment and to fund operations should end any military engagement. No further vote should be needed; no joint resolution or presidential sign-off should be required. With that rule in place, the president would be much less inclined to unilaterally drag us into war without congressional consultation or even public debate.
In sum, voters must hold those responsible for one of the worst foreign policy blunders in modern American history accountable for the damage they have caused. And Democrats must grab the opportunity to rejigger the balance of power between the executive and legislative branches and stop spending money and resources in the Middle East in ways that offend our deepest-held values, achieve no tangible benefits, and result in one disastrous war after another.
“Trump’s utter stupidity, rotten judgment, and incompetence…”
Yep—-that’s our boy! Which Americans….with their faulty electoral college system CHOSE to inflict upon themselves——TWICE!
What a sad, sad state of affairs!
Another great essay and absolutely precise. I just hope enough Americans are cognitively capable enough to understand and vote accordingly. It appears that we Democrats must be truly authentic, hammer on the economic woes of average citizens, and emphasize the control exercised by billionaires, especially on their pushing AI to take over our lives. Protecting democracy, Trump's corruption and destruction are incredibly important but drag discussions off track and fail to motivate some of the needed voters.