U.S. strikes on Iran split Washington, raise questions of success
Congress debates next steps, seeks answers from White House, amid report that Iran nuclear development offset by a few months
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WASHINGTON _ The U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites reignited a political battle in Washington, splitting lawmakers split over the legality, strategy, and potential fallout of a move that could mark a turning point in U.S. engagement in the Middle East.
President Donald Trump’s administration canceled a scheduled briefing with House members on Tuesday, rescheduling it for Friday — sparking frustration among lawmakers eager for timely information.
Even as the White House has asserted the strikes were successful in stalling Iran’s nuclear capabilities, some experts have warned that further action may be needed to complete the mission.
“There are concerns that the strikes may not have hit all intended targets. Additional action could be necessary, depending on the results of the battle damage assessment and whether the ceasefire holds,” a senior House Foreign Affairs Committee source told 24Sight News.
The White House’s bullish assessment of the attack has been undermined by its own intelligence.
The initial assessment from Defense Intelligence Agency of “Operation Midnight Hammer”, determined it successfully sealed the entrances to two of three nuclear sites but did not collapse the facilities beneath and only delayed their nuclear weapons’ development by a few months, according to a report from The New York Times.
Since Saturday night, questions have swirled of whether the U.S. will engage more in the Israel war with Iran, spurred in part by the president himself. On Sunday the official word from the administration was that they would not pursue “regime change”, aka overthrowing the long-running theocratic Islamic republic. But then the president changed the official stance to say they might seek to overthrow the Ayatollah. Then he said they wouldn’t.
Questions of retaliation by Iran have flourished, despite being severely weakened over years of successful attacks by both the U.S. and Israel, from the first Trump administration’s assassination of Iranian officer Qasem Soleimani to the full-scale attack launched recently by Israel.
Iran launched a series of missiles at the U.S. airbase in Qatar, the country which gave Trump a $400 million luxury Boeing jumbo plane, which were easily swatted down by American missile defense.
A ceasefire between Israel and Iran, announced by Trump in public statements, appeared to be holding Tuesday evening.
Republicans — including many who Trump and his nationalist movement sought to exorcise from the party — have largely praised Trump’s decision, arguing he is demonstrating “peace through strength.”
But some libertarian-leaning members have raised constitutional concerns.
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) called the move unconstitutional and initially floated a plan to introduce a war powers resolution aimed at blocking further military action without congressional approval. GOP leaders in both chambers have opposed such measures, but Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said he plans to move forward with his effort to force a vote in the Senate.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) went a step further, calling the War Powers Act itself unconstitutional, telling reporters Tuesday that some experts view it as a “violation of Article II powers.”
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Thanks, good report.