Anti-war activist protest in front of the White House in Washington, D.C., on January 4, 2020. (Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/via Getty Images)
With US and Iran 'A Spark Away' From Devastating Conflict, Trump Vetoes War Powers Resolution
"Trump has gone out of his way to trample both the powers of Congress and the will of the people, all in order to bring us closer to a catastrophic war with Iran and distract from his failures to address this global pandemic."
Progressive foreign policy groups are condemning President Donald Trump for recklessly keeping the U.S. "on the war path" Wednesday by vetoing a bipartisan resolution that would have barred him from attacking Iran without congressional approval.
"Once again Donald Trump has gone out of his way to trample both the powers of Congress and the will of the people, all in order to bring us closer to a catastrophic war with Iran and distract from his failures to address this global pandemic," Stephen Miles, executive director of Win Without War, said in a statement late Wednesday.
"Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
--Stephen Miles, Win Without War
"The Covid-19 crisis should be a wake-up call: the war-first foreign policy status quo has made the world less safe, not more," said Miles. "Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
Trump announced his decision to veto Sen. Tim Kaine's (D-Va.) Iran War Powers Resolution with a statement calling the measure "insulting" and "part of a strategy to win an election on November 3 by dividing the Republican Party."
The president insisted that the U.S. is not currently "engaged in the use of force against Iran" and said his January assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike in Baghdad was "fully authorized by law"--a claim legal experts have disputed.
The Senate is expected to vote Thursday afternoon on whether to override Trump's veto. A two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate is required to override a presidential veto.
Trump's veto came two weeks after the president said he instructed the U.S. Navy to "shoot down and destroy" any Iranian vessels that "harass" American ships in the Persian Gulf, further heightening the possibility of all out war.
Kaine urged his fellow senators to join him in voting to override Trump's veto on Thursday. "Congress must vote before sending our troops into harm's way," the Virginia Democrat tweeted.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) echoed Kaine's call:
Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, said in a statement Wednesday that Congress "can't afford to take its eye off the ball" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The U.S. and Iran are still a spark away from conflagration," said Abdi. "Congress should seek to pass this resolution again and overcome the presidential veto, whether by overriding or inserting war prohibitions into a must-pass bill later this year."
Abdi also urged Congress to repeal the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iraq that the Trump administration cited as a legal justification for the assassination of Soleimani.
"After two years of failure following Trump's decision to abrogate the nuclear deal, now should be a time for the administration to take stock, consider the unacceptable consequences of war amid pandemic, and recalibrate its Iran approach," said Abdi. "That should start with a humanitarian lifting of key Iran sanctions, as has been called for by the U.N. and other actors, and a return to diplomacy."
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just four days to go in our Spring Campaign, we are not even halfway to our goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Progressive foreign policy groups are condemning President Donald Trump for recklessly keeping the U.S. "on the war path" Wednesday by vetoing a bipartisan resolution that would have barred him from attacking Iran without congressional approval.
"Once again Donald Trump has gone out of his way to trample both the powers of Congress and the will of the people, all in order to bring us closer to a catastrophic war with Iran and distract from his failures to address this global pandemic," Stephen Miles, executive director of Win Without War, said in a statement late Wednesday.
"Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
--Stephen Miles, Win Without War
"The Covid-19 crisis should be a wake-up call: the war-first foreign policy status quo has made the world less safe, not more," said Miles. "Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
Trump announced his decision to veto Sen. Tim Kaine's (D-Va.) Iran War Powers Resolution with a statement calling the measure "insulting" and "part of a strategy to win an election on November 3 by dividing the Republican Party."
The president insisted that the U.S. is not currently "engaged in the use of force against Iran" and said his January assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike in Baghdad was "fully authorized by law"--a claim legal experts have disputed.
The Senate is expected to vote Thursday afternoon on whether to override Trump's veto. A two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate is required to override a presidential veto.
Trump's veto came two weeks after the president said he instructed the U.S. Navy to "shoot down and destroy" any Iranian vessels that "harass" American ships in the Persian Gulf, further heightening the possibility of all out war.
Kaine urged his fellow senators to join him in voting to override Trump's veto on Thursday. "Congress must vote before sending our troops into harm's way," the Virginia Democrat tweeted.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) echoed Kaine's call:
Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, said in a statement Wednesday that Congress "can't afford to take its eye off the ball" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The U.S. and Iran are still a spark away from conflagration," said Abdi. "Congress should seek to pass this resolution again and overcome the presidential veto, whether by overriding or inserting war prohibitions into a must-pass bill later this year."
Abdi also urged Congress to repeal the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iraq that the Trump administration cited as a legal justification for the assassination of Soleimani.
"After two years of failure following Trump's decision to abrogate the nuclear deal, now should be a time for the administration to take stock, consider the unacceptable consequences of war amid pandemic, and recalibrate its Iran approach," said Abdi. "That should start with a humanitarian lifting of key Iran sanctions, as has been called for by the U.N. and other actors, and a return to diplomacy."
Progressive foreign policy groups are condemning President Donald Trump for recklessly keeping the U.S. "on the war path" Wednesday by vetoing a bipartisan resolution that would have barred him from attacking Iran without congressional approval.
"Once again Donald Trump has gone out of his way to trample both the powers of Congress and the will of the people, all in order to bring us closer to a catastrophic war with Iran and distract from his failures to address this global pandemic," Stephen Miles, executive director of Win Without War, said in a statement late Wednesday.
"Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
--Stephen Miles, Win Without War
"The Covid-19 crisis should be a wake-up call: the war-first foreign policy status quo has made the world less safe, not more," said Miles. "Now is the time to rein in U.S. militarism, not risk another war."
Trump announced his decision to veto Sen. Tim Kaine's (D-Va.) Iran War Powers Resolution with a statement calling the measure "insulting" and "part of a strategy to win an election on November 3 by dividing the Republican Party."
The president insisted that the U.S. is not currently "engaged in the use of force against Iran" and said his January assassination of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike in Baghdad was "fully authorized by law"--a claim legal experts have disputed.
The Senate is expected to vote Thursday afternoon on whether to override Trump's veto. A two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate is required to override a presidential veto.
Trump's veto came two weeks after the president said he instructed the U.S. Navy to "shoot down and destroy" any Iranian vessels that "harass" American ships in the Persian Gulf, further heightening the possibility of all out war.
Kaine urged his fellow senators to join him in voting to override Trump's veto on Thursday. "Congress must vote before sending our troops into harm's way," the Virginia Democrat tweeted.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) echoed Kaine's call:
Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, said in a statement Wednesday that Congress "can't afford to take its eye off the ball" amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
"The U.S. and Iran are still a spark away from conflagration," said Abdi. "Congress should seek to pass this resolution again and overcome the presidential veto, whether by overriding or inserting war prohibitions into a must-pass bill later this year."
Abdi also urged Congress to repeal the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) against Iraq that the Trump administration cited as a legal justification for the assassination of Soleimani.
"After two years of failure following Trump's decision to abrogate the nuclear deal, now should be a time for the administration to take stock, consider the unacceptable consequences of war amid pandemic, and recalibrate its Iran approach," said Abdi. "That should start with a humanitarian lifting of key Iran sanctions, as has been called for by the U.N. and other actors, and a return to diplomacy."