Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) on Tuesday blamed escalating tensions with Iran squarely on the president, accusing him of “creating a very dangerous world scenario” by responding to Iranian threats.
The presidential hopeful joined his left-wing colleagues in critiquing President Trump’s decision to eliminate Iran’s top terror mastermind Qasem Soleimani, who is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Americans and injuries of thousands more.
“The Trump administration doesn’t have a clue about what it is doing, but is creating a very dangerous world scenario,” Sanders said in a tweet.
“Let us never forget that the Constitution, which some of us actually believe and respect, says Congress has the responsibility for making war, not the President,” he added alongside a clip of his appearance with CNN’s Anderson Cooper:
That same night, Iran launched over a dozen ballistic missiles targeting airbases in Iraq housing U.S. troops as an official response to the elimination of their top terror chief, who was also behind the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. No U.S. casualties have been reported.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) reportedly declined a call from Vice President Mike Pence, briefing her on the attacks. While she eventually called him back, she immediately blamed the president, citing “needless provocations from the administration”:
“Closely monitoring the situation following bombings targeting U.S. troops in Iraq,” Pelosi wrote on Twitter, blaming the administration for “needless provocations”:
The president will address the nation at 11 a.m. ET.