‘This moment is a test.’ Area lawmakers weigh Trump’s decision to kill Iranian general
Republicans from Kansas and Missouri applauded President Donald Trump’s decision to order the killing an Iranian general linked to terrorism, while Democrats warned the move could set off a war.
Iran has promised retaliation after a U.S. airstrike in Iraq killed Qassem Soleimani, who oversaw Iran’s clandestine operations and coordination with terrorist organizations throughout the Middle East.
“Soleimani led Iran’s worldwide terrorist efforts,” said Sen. Roy Blunt, a Missouri Republican and member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
“Hopefully his death sends a message to those in control of Iran that there is a price to be paid for being the number one state sponsor of terrorism.”
The assassination of Soleimani in Iraq comes after several days of protest at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad led by Iranian- backed groups. The State Department has instructed Americans in Iraq to evacuate the country following the airstrike, which Iraqi leaders condemned as a violation of the nation’s sovereignty.
The U.S. is deploying additional troops to the Middle East as tensions escalate. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Missouri Democrat, warned Friday that the nation now faces a crucial test of whether it learned its lesson from the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
“I fear this decision is a grave miscalculation by the President. Such a monumental escalation in tensions with Iran, without consulting congressional leadership and our allies abroad, puts our service members in danger and has the potential for disastrous ramifications,” Cleaver said in a statement.
“The American people are sick of never-ending wars in the Middle East, and I’m sick of the Executive Branch’s continued usurpation of congressional authority. This moment is a test of whether or not we learned our lesson in Iraq, and I pray that we seek all opportunities to de-escalate this volatile situation.”
Rep. Sharice Davids of Kansas, the only other Congressional Democrat in the metro area, said Soleimani’s killing “will only serve to further destabilize an already dangerous region and put more American and civilian lives at risk. The American people deserve to know that this Administration has a strategy for how to deal with the aftermath of this major escalation.”
Davids, raised by a single mother who served in the Army, said her priority was to see that the administration has a plan to keep service members, embassy personnel and U.S. citizens safe.
“As someone who grew up in a military family, I know what it’s like to have those you care about serve overseas,” she said.
During an appearance on CNN, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, a former Kansas congressman, said the airstrike disrupted an imminent attack that would have endangered American lives.
Despite the State Department’s instruction for Americans to evacuate Iraq, Pompeo argued the world was safer in the wake of Soleimani’s death.
Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, called Soleimani “a perpetrator of death” during an interview on CNBC Friday morning and voiced support for the decision to kill the Iranian military leader.
However, Moran also raised concerns about the instability in the region that is likely to follow the attack.
“My hope is that we’ve done everything that we can before this attack to protect our servicemen and women and to protect our embassy and State Department personnel not only in Iraq but in the Middle East and around the globe,” Moran said.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, raised concerns last month about reports that the Pentagon was considering an increase to its military presence in the Middle East.
However, Hawley joined other Republicans from the region in supporting the strike against Soleimani.
“Glad he’s dead. Soleimani has murdered American soldiers and terrorized innocents for long enough,” Hawley said on Twitter Thursday night.
Other Republicans from the region issued similarly strong statements in support of Trump’s decision and argued the nation was safer as a result.
“Qassem Soleimani was a brutal terrorist responsible for killing hundreds of our brave servicemen and women in the Middle East,” Sen. Pat Roberts, a retiring Kansas Republican, said in a statement.
“I applaud the Trump Administration, the U.S. military and our intelligence community for taking action against the largest threat in the Middle East and protecting Americans overseas.”
Rep. Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican mounting a run for Roberts’ seat, said Trump “was completely and totally justified in carrying out this strike against General Soleimani, a terrorist and evil butcher responsible for the deaths of literally hundreds of Americans.”
Former Rep. Jim Slattery, a Kansas Democrat who has been involved in faith-based outreach to Iran for years, said that Trump was justified in ordering the attack if U.S. intelligence showed an imminent threat.
Slattery, who was involved in the successful negotiation to release an American citizen held Iran last year, blamed the increased tension between the two nations on Trump’s decision to pull out of a nuclear agreement with Iran brokered by President Barack Obama and warned that steps must be taken to prevent the conflict from escalating.
“This is a very dangerous time for us. A war with Iran would be incredibly destructive to the region and it could be enormously dangerous for Americans,” Slattery said, noting that Iran is three times the size of Iraq, where U.S. forces have spent most of the past two decades dealing with the fallout of the 2003 invasion.
This story was originally published January 3, 2020 at 1:36 PM.
