Massachusetts delegation condemns Trump’s takedown of Iranian general

The Massachusetts Democratic congressional delegation was quick to condemn President Trump’s strike that killed a top Iranian general as reckless, while also saying the Quds Force leader involved in the deaths of hundreds of Americans was “an evil man” who would not be mourned.

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley tweeted that Trump “was JUST impeached for abuse of power for political gain & now he is leading us to the brink of war because he believes it will help his re-election. We are sick of endless wars. Congress has the sole authority to declare war and we must deescalate.”

U.S. Senator and 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren initially called Gen. Qassem Soleimani “a murderer, responsible for the deaths of thousands, including hundreds of Americans” but said “our priority must be to avoid another costly war.”

She later trained her attention on Trump, calling the president “dangerous and reckless,” and saying, “He’s escalated crises and betrayed our partners. He’s undermined our diplomatic relationships for his own personal, political gain. We cannot allow him to drag us back into another war.”

U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, an Iraq War veteran, said Soleimani was “an evil man. He has American blood on his hands, the blood of some of my friends.” But he added the drone strike, followed by Trump’s decision to send 3,500 troops to the Middle East, was “escalating the conflict” without a plan.

Delegation members — including U.S. Senate rivals Edward Markey and U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan and U.S. Rep. Bill Keating — hammered Trump for bypassing Congress in authorizing the hit.

Kennedy tweeted, “Qassem Soleimani was an evil man who deserved to be held accountable for his sins. But carrying out an assassination without notifying Congress or presenting a plan to avoid war and American casualties is reckless and dangerous.”

Markey said, “We cannot and must not get drawn into war with Iran.”

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2Fi6epZ