General Discussion

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. In the House of Representatives, Josh Gottheimer applauded the administration’s “decisive action” to defend American interests and allies. Greg Landsman argued that the US “is destroying Iran’s missiles and bombs to stop them from taking more lives”, and said he would oppose a resolution that he fears would amount to abandoning Israel.

Congressman Jared Moskowitz rehearsed Tehran’s long record of sponsoring violence across the region and insisted the focus must now be on shaping what comes next rather than relitigating what has already happened. 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.”