Chuck DarwinDemocratic leaders were outspoken during the massive US military buildup in the Middle East,
⭐️decrying his unwillingness to engage with Congress and lack of long-term strategy for Iran.
🔸They noted that it was Trump, during his first term, who shredded Barack Obama’s nuclear agreement with Iran.
Once the US and Israeli military struck on Saturday, the sharpest voices accused the president of riding roughshod over the constitution.
Senator Bernie #Sanders denounced the assault as “an illegal, premeditated and unconstitutional war”,
while Senator Chris #Van #Hollen warned it amounted to a “regime-change war” that would leave the US less secure.
Senator Tim #Kaine, long a thorn in the side of presidents of both parties on war powers, called the strikes “a colossal mistake”
and demanded a swift vote requiring Trump to seek authorisation.
Others, however, were more qualified. Tom #Suozzi, a New York Democrat who co-chairs the Problem Solvers caucus, wrote on X: “I agree with the President’s objectives that Iran can never be allowed to obtain nuclear capabilities.”
Henry #Cuellar of Texas said the threat posed by Iran was “real and longstanding”.
And not all Democrats are lining up behind a war powers rebuke.
There may be enough defections to block a war powers resolution,
-- although a few libertarian Republicans could join those in favor.
The split also exposes a deeper unease within Democratic ranks over how robustly to confront Iran and how far to go in backing Israeli military action.
There are also political traps as Republicans accuse them of lacking patriotism and ignoring the Iranian diaspora who have taken to the streets to celebrate Khamenei’s downfall.
The discomfort is embodied by Senator Mark #Kelly, a former combat pilot and potential 2028 presidential contender. Appearing on NBC’s Meet the Press, Kelly was asked if he agrees with Lindsey Graham, a hawkish Republican senator, that the world is now safer because the supreme leader of Iran is dead.
Kelly replied: “Well, I agree with that part. I mean, it’s a good thing that the supreme leader is gone and some of the folks around him.”
👍But he also delivered a withering assessment of the White House’s preparation.
♦️ “Hope is not a strategy,” Kelly warned,
questioning whether the administration had any serious plan for the aftermath.
Air power can destroy targets, he added,
⚡️but fully eliminating capabilities without boots on the ground is “incredibly challenging”.
The congressional debate over war powers would mostly be symbolic.
🆘Even if a resolution were to pass the narrowly split Congress, Trump likely would veto it and Congress would not have the two-thirds majority needed to overturn that rejection.
Congress has often failed to block other US military actions, including in a Senate vote on Venezuela,
👉but the roll calls stand as a public record.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/02/democrats-divided-iran-trump?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
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