Hakeem Jeffries won’t commit to blocking additional Iran war funding
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Sunday stopped short of committing to blocking any additional funding for the war in Iran, saying the president has so far failed to justify the war but that “we will cross that bridge when we come to it.”
The New York Democrat was asked on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” whether House Democrats would block a funding request if the White House asked for more money for the military.
Jeffries said the administration has so far “failed to make its case…for this war of choice in the Middle East,” and unless President Donald Trump provides a “compelling rationale,” he “will have a tough case to make on Capitol Hill.”
Last year, Congress approved a $900 billion defense spending bill as part of the routine annual budget appropriations, and the president signed the bill in December. But since the United States began its military operation in Iran, lawmakers have been considering whether to pass additional defense spending to strengthen the U.S. military.
On Tuesday, following a classified briefing for senators on the war, several lawmakers, including Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., told reporters they expected the Trump administration to seek additional funding for the war effort. Coons added that he would support additional funding for the troops, but, like Jeffries, he demanded more information from the administration about the war.
“I expect the Pentagon to submit a request for additional funding, and I will continue to support our troops and ensure we make every investment possible to keep them and their families safe,” Coons said. “But we need an open hearing, so that you and the American people can get answers to your questions about the planning failures that have led to some of the challenges, losses and mistakes of this war so far.”
On Sunday, Jeffries told “Meet the Press” that Trump “of course has a responsibility, first and foremost, to make his case to the American people, which he has failed to do.”
Trump administration officials have not said whether they would seek additional funding for the Pentagon, but they have floated the idea of invoking the Defense Production Act to force U.S. companies to increase their munitions supplies.
Jeffries and other Democratic lawmakers have widely criticized the president’s decision to launch a war with Iran, calling on Trump to better explain his decision to strike the country.
“The American people do not want to see billions of dollars spent bombing Iran and the Middle East, while at the same time my Republican colleagues and this president are unwilling to spend a dime to reduce their grocery bills, to spend a dime to make seeing a doctor more affordable or to do anything to address this affordability crisis that is very real in the United States of America,” the minority leader said Sunday.
Last week, both houses of Congress failed to pass a war powers resolution that would have restricted military action in Iran. Most Democrats and two Republicans voted in favor of the resolution.
Jeffries also spoke Sunday about the ongoing shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, which began in February after Senate Democrats blocked funding for the agency and called for new rules for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
On Thursday, Trump fired Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and said he intended to nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin, Republican of Oklahoma, to fill the post. Democratic lawmakers have said the move would not require them to forgo DHS funding, which Jeffries reiterated on Sunday.
“Republicans control the House, the Senate and the presidency. They made the affirmative decision to shut down FEMA, the Coast Guard and the TSA, rather than control ICE,” Jeffries told “Meet the Press,” adding that firing Noem is “certainly not” enough action to move the needle on DHS funding.
“What we need is a policy change, not just a personnel change,” he said.
