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Congress MIA As Trump Threatens Civilizational Destruction

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WASHINGTON ― The part of the U.S. government that’s supposed to decide whether we go to war is on vacation while President Donald Trump threatens the wholesale annihilation of a foreign country.

The president wrote on his social media website Tuesday that a “whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.” The statement came amid other threats to bomb civilian infrastructure unless Iran reopens the Strait of Hormuz.

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Congress has not held a single hearing on the war, which has killed thousands of people, including more than a dozen U.S. service members, caused gas prices to spike, and led to Iranian attacks on U.S. allies throughout the Middle East, destabilizing the region. Republicans show no interest in getting involved.

As of Tuesday afternoon, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) have had no response to Trump’s genocidal threat against Iran. Spokespeople for the Republican leaders did not respond to requests for comment.

With both the House and Senate out of session until next week, Republican lawmakers don’t even have to pretend they haven’t seen the president’s statement. They can just hide in their districts.

“It’s unfortunate the Republicans are just silent and just not doing their job of oversight,” Rep. Gil Cisneros (D-Calif.) told HuffPost. Cisernos, a Navy veteran, said Congress should invoke the War Powers Resolution to bring an end to the Trump-launched war. “It’s just ridiculous what’s going on here and what he’s doing with these threats ― he’s making us the bad guy.”

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House Democratic leaders called on Johnson to bring the House back to Washington from its two-week Easter recess, a step which would allow for hearings and for War Powers votes.

“Donald Trump is completely unhinged. His statement threatening to eradicate an entire civilization shocks the conscience and requires a decisive congressional response,” House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said in a joint statement with other senior House Democrats. “The House must come back into session immediately and vote to end this reckless war of choice in the Middle East before Donald Trump plunges our country into World War III.”

Progressive Democrats in the House and Senate went further, calling on Congress and members of Trump’s cabinet to join forces and immediately oust Trump from office by invoking the 25th Amendment, which outlines procedures for removing a president “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office.”

“After bombing a school and massacring young girls, the war criminal in the White House is threatening genocide,” Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) said on social media. “It’s time to invoke the 25th Amendment. This maniac should be removed from office.”

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Several prominent MAGA voices outside of Congress have spoken out forcefully against the Iran war. And one prominent Republican, former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), also said Trump should be removed per the 25th Amendment, calling his Tuesday morning statement “evil and madness.” Greene, however, removed herself from the elected office where she would at least have a theoretical say in how the war goes.

Invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office would be a difficult task, however, since the text of the amendment allows the president to assert in writing he’s suffering no disability. Ultimately, removing him would require a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate ― an even higher bar than removing the president through impeachment.

Still, it’s possible Trump’s provocative comments could have consequences on Capitol Hill. Previous efforts to stop the Iran conflict, through votes on War Powers resolutions, failed by slim margins last month. With just a handful of additional Republican defections, a resolution could clear both the House and Senate ― though Trump would still be able to veto.

Cisneros said he didn’t see Trump’s cabinet playing along with the 25th Amendment plan.

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“The best thing we could do right now is get Congress back, get a war powers resolution voted on, and hopefully get some Republican support and rein the president back in and call him out for his illegal activity, that he’s doing this illegal war,” Cisneros said.

Jennifer Bendery contributed reporting.