California Governor Gavin Newsom has declared Trump’s strike against Iran is illegal.
If we take Trump’s speech at face value, the War Powers Act would permit this strike as long as certain stipulations are followed moving forward.
Gavin, however, has handcuffed himself if he happens to become president in the next election.
Democrats keep pointing to the War Powers Act to say that Trump broke the law, but they are cherry-picking aspects of the legislation without giving everyone the full picture.
The purpose of this legislation, which was enacted in 1973, overriding a President Nixon veto, was to prevent a sitting president from getting the country into a prolonged conflict without congressional approval.
The legislation calls for the president to consult with Congress “in every possible instance” before sending our troops into battle. This was done here, as the Gang of Eight was briefed on the operation. Consult doesn't mean get their approval… congressional approval is not needed for a strike.
The sticking point here is that without congressional approval, the president must have all troops withdrawn within 60-90 days of the initial strike. Democrats, in making their complaints about Trump, are leaving most of this out.
If Trump feels there is a threat against the United States, it is his duty to call for a strike to prevent that threat from becoming a reality. To that point, Trump stated that Iran had rejected every opportunity to renounce its nuclear desires.
He then added, “Instead, they attempted to rebuild their nuclear program and to continue developing long range missiles that can now threaten our very good friends and allies in Europe, our troops stationed overseas and could soon reach the American homeland.”
Fact checks said this assessment goes directly against the assessment made after Trump’s earlier Iran strikes against nuclear facilities. But I disagree.
You should not have to wait for the country to be on the brink before making a strike. Sec. Rubio said they had evidence Iran had figured out how to make its missiles travel farther. The media appears to be confusing the delivery device with the warhead in this instance.
After the strike, Newsom said that Iran must never be able to possess nuclear weapons, then added, “But that does not justify the President of the United States engaging in an illegal, dangerous war that will risk the lives of our American service members and our friends without justification to the American people.”
That, to me, means that Newsom does not grasp how this legislation works, which immediately disqualifies him in terms of being a serious presidential candidate. If he is not willing to act in situations like this, he cannot be trusted in that office.
The reaction to his statement on X was overwhelmingly negative. For instance, one user responded, “Which one is it Gavin? They can’t have nuclear weapons and need to be removed? Or the operation is not justified? Pick one stance please. If you want to run for President, you should get comfortable making bold statements on where you stand.”
Another made my point, responding, “Not illegal — but you’d have to be able to read the Constitution to know that.” This is a disaster for Newsom, who is now clearly just going for political points over sound judgment. Simply put, the man is not fit to be president if he is not willing to make these tough calls for fear of taking a political hit.
