HUDSON – In response to President Donald Trump’s recent airstrikes on three nuclear sites in Iran, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) joined 11 of her colleagues in sending a letter to the president to pledge their support for the War Powers Resolution.
On June 22, Trump acted without Congressional authorization and ordered the U.S. Air Force and Navy to attack Iranian nuclear sites Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan in an operation called Midnight Hammer.
According to Congress.gov, the War Powers Resolution, adopted in 1973, “requires the president to consult with Congress prior to committing U.S. Armed Forces into hostilities abroad.”
Goodlander, a U.S. Navy veteran, said Congressional authorization is also required under the U.S. Constitution.
“Article 1 Section 8 explicitly requires a vote by Congress to declare war,” said Goodlander. “In recognition of that clear and sacred Constitutional duty, we will all be supporting the War Powers Resolution. As our founders intended, this will ensure we have a full and honest conversation with the American people about what American military action against Iran would mean. While destroying nuclear sites may achieve initial tactical success, it far from guarantees long term strategic victory. Before any further escalation, we must be willing to grapple with, and ultimately answer, the hard questions. We stand ready and willing to execute our Constitutional responsibility, to protect our troops, and to keep the American people safe.”
Also in their letter, Goodlander and her colleagues said politicians acted irresponsibly when they decided to declare war on Iraq and Afghanistan.
“Now, trillions of dollars and countless deaths later, we still haven’t gotten accountability,” they said. “We refuse to make those same mistakes. We cannot repeat our approach from 2001 and 2002. The answer cannot be ‘we’ll figure it out as we go.’”
Goodlander and her colleagues agreed that the Iranian regime is focused on inflicting harm on Israel and the U.S. However, further military action by the U.S. must be conducted in the appropriate manner.
“We need to take the time to involve both the American people and Congress,” they said. “This is what our founders intended and that is what the Constitution requires. That is what our young patriots in uniform deserve. That is what the 40,000 U.S. troops stationed in the Middle East deserve. That is what the 7,000-plus of our fellow soldiers who died in the Global War on Terror deserved.”
