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Lawmakers from Massachusetts did not mince words when deriding the strikes. They called for more congressional involvement and votes on war powers resolutions this week.
Sen. Ed Markey. Lane Turner/Boston Globe, file
When President Donald Trump authorized strikes on Iran over the weekend, forceful condemnations from Massachusetts politicians came rolling in. The Democrats who represents Bay State residents in Congress used harsh words to describe the military actions, with many of them saying that the strikes amounted to an illegal war.
Bombs continued to fall across the Middle East Monday, and officials confirmed the deaths of four American service members after an Iranian strike in Kuwait.
Members of both chambers of Congress are preparing to vote on war powers resolutions this week meant to limit Trump’s operations. Although there is bipartisan support, the resolutions appear to still face an uphill battle. Even if they were to pass, it is unclear how much they would affect a conflict that has already begun. Lawmakers from Massachusetts are likely to feature prominently in those debates. Here’s how they reacted to the strikes on Iran.
In a video posted to social media, Sen. Elizabeth Warren alluded to reporting from CNN before the strikes about how a top U.S. general voiced serious concerns internally regarding a major attack on Iran. She called the conflict a “war built on lies” and a “betrayal of the American people.”
“Your tax dollars are being used to bomb Iran, while Donald Trump ignores the struggles of working people who can’t afford health care and are struggling to pay for groceries here at home,” Warren said.
Sen. Ed Markey issued a statement warning about the risks of an escalation into a wider regional war. He called for an immediate vote on the Senate’s war powers resolution and urged diplomacy.
“A diplomatic solution remains the best way to permanently and verifiably prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. This is a crisis of Trump’s creation. Americans do not want another endless war in the Middle East,” Markey said.
Rep. Seth Moulton, a Marine Corps veteran, called Trump a “draft dodger” and said that the death of Iran’s supreme leader does not in and of itself create freedom for anyone.
“Regime change without a plan is how you create vacuums, chaos, and war. We’ve seen this before and it didn’t end well. Let’s not make the same mistake and have more brave Americans pay for it with their lives,” Moulton said on social media.
Rep. Katherine Clark, the No. 2 House Democrat, connected Trump’s focus on military actions to domestic concerns that many residents have about rising costs and ICE crackdowns.
“Americans have been clear what they want. It is not war. They want a chance to be able to have a little breathing room, provide for their families, they want health care, they want to be able to have help for our veterans and to have communities that are free from the fear of the reign of terror of ICE,” Clark said in a video.
Rep. Jake Auchincloss, who also served in the Marine Corps, called the strikes a “war of choice without congressional authorization.” He linked these actions to other Trump administration policies regarding Venezuela and Ukraine.
“Given his lies to the Iranian protestors about help on the way, his weakness in Ukraine, and his blood-for-oil scheme in Venezuela, this president has no credibility on either the strategy or law guiding foreign policy,” Auchincloss said in a statement.
Rep. Jim McGovern drew attention to contradictory information about Iran that Trump has shared.
“Is Donald Trump confused about why he’s starting this war? Maybe he needs to have his memory checked. Less than a year ago he told us Iran’s nuclear program had been ‘obliterated.’ Now he says we need more strikes. Was he lying then? Or is he lying now?” McGovern asked.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley called on Congress to “rein in Trump” while referencing a strike on a girls’ school in Iran that reportedly killed more than 150 people.
“My heart breaks for the United States service members killed. My heart breaks for the innocent Iranian schoolgirls killed. Every child is a parent’s entire universe,” Pressley said in another post.
Rep. Stephen Lynch said that although the Iranian regime is a “ruthless dictatorship,” there was no credible demonstration of a threat to U.S. forces before the strikes. He also said that Congress had not been presented with any intelligence from the Trump administration “indicating that it can accomplish its stated goal of ‘regime change’ without the major sacrifice of U.S. lives and a massive expenditure of taxpayer dollars.”
Rep. Lori Trahan said that U.S. servicemembers being put in harm’s way “deserve a clear mission” and a strategy that protects regional stability.
“At a moment of real economic pressure, driven in part by reckless policies advanced by this administration, the last thing our country needs is a costly war launched without congressional debate or a clear strategy,” Trahan said.
Rep. Richard Neal shared resources for Americans in the Middle East. He said in a statement that Congress must “reassert its constitutionally mandated war power and debate this matter on its merits in plain view.”
“We cannot let another generation fight another endless war with no clear endgame. That is why Congress must fulfill its responsibility as a coequal branch of government and reaffirm its Article I authority,” Neal said.
Ross Cristantiello
Ross Cristantiello, a general assignment news reporter for Boston.com since 2022, covers local politics, crime, the environment, and more.
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