Trump: ‘I might have forced Israel to act’ when it launched war against Iran

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump said Tuesday he “may have forced Israel to act” by starting the war against Iran that has already claimed the lives of six American soldiers.

Trump’s statement came less than a day after Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the United States had joined the campaign to protect American troops following Israel’s planned attack.

“We were in negotiations with these lunatics and my opinion was that they would attack first,” Trump told reporters. “…and I didn’t want that to happen. If anything, I might have been able to force Israel to act, but Israel was ready, and we were ready, and we had a very, very strong influence because virtually everything they had was taken out.”

Trump made the remarks ahead of a bilateral meeting at the White House with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as lawmakers on Capitol Hill struggled to make sense of the sudden war.

Merz said Germany was “on the same side when it comes to overthrowing this terrible regime in Tehran” – although government officials have maintained that the conflict is not about regime change but rather about destroying Iran’s conventional missile stockpiles and production and thwarting any nuclear ambitions.

Iran has fired numerous missiles and drones since the assassination of its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday. The attacks have caused damage across the Middle East, including at the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported reported.

During a previously scheduled hearing Tuesday in which Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby was questioned about the administration’s national defense strategy, Senate Democrats pushed for justification for war with Iran.

Sen. Angus King, an independent from Maine who caucuses with Democrats, echoed Rubio’s sentiments Statements Monday that the United States joined the war to prevent retaliatory attacks on American troops in the region after Israel planned attacks on the Iranian leadership camp. Government officials previously said US intelligence was heavily involved in planning the Israeli offensive.

“I find it very disturbing that we are engaging this nation in war because of a decision by a loyal ally, and I am a supporter of Israel,” King said. “I don’t think anyone should determine our decision to go to war, but rather the interest of the United States.”

“The president made our decision,” Colby replied.

GOP joins in

Congress, meanwhile, will vote this week on a War Powers Act resolution that has found confined support among Republicans to stop Trump’s unilateral military actions in Iran without congressional approval.

Lawmakers are largely divided along party lines in their support for military action, with Republicans lining up behind Trump.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told The measure is likely to fail in the House on Monday, reporters said. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., is the sole Republican sponsor of the House version legislation.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) defended the administration’s initiation of war in Iran and denounced “obvious” allegations that Trump broke the law by failing to first seek congressional approval.

“This is the first president in seven presidencies who has actually done something about the thorn in our side that has been continually imposed on us. And now you’re criticizing him, you’re saying it’s illegal. It’s not,” Mullin said Tuesday during the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.

“How about we say, ‘Thank you, Mr. President, for finally getting rid of this nuisance, this murderer, this sponsor of terror,'” Mullin said.

Virginia’s Kaine says GOP ‘nervous about voting for war’

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., lead sponsor of the Senate War Powers Act The invoicecriticized Mullin for suggesting “that the fear on this side of the aisle is that we don’t like President Trump.”

“He expressed that concern incorrectly. I think I can speak for most of my colleagues who have concerns and say our concern is: Have we learned nothing from 25 years of war in the Middle East?” Kaine said.

Kaine said in a brief interview that Republicans who support Trump’s war in Iran should submit an Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) to officially give it Congress’s stamp of approval.

“And the fact that there has been a reluctance to bring AUMFs to the table shows me that while Republicans don’t want to oppose the president, they are also afraid to vote for war,” Kaine said. “If you’re nervous about voting for war, think about what that says to the troops who are risking their lives. That fear should make you question whether that’s a good idea or not.”

Kaine said the 2001 AUMF, which Congress drafted somewhat broadly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and is still in effect, does not cover Trump’s military actions in Iran.

“The president didn’t quote that,” he said. “And we all agree that Iran was not covered by the 2001 AUMF. It was intended to cover non-state terrorist groups, not sovereign nations.”

During the course of Tuesday, MPs were to be informed about the war by government representatives in camera.