One year ago, the Trump administration irresponsibly withdrew from the landmark Iran nuclear deal. In the past year, the Trump administration has pushed a crippling “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran. And now there are U.S. warships and B-52 bombers in the Persian Gulf. To top it off, the Trump Administration has ordered the Pentagon to draw up plans to send 120,000 troops to the region.
That’s why it’s so critical to support the legislation in the House and the Senate to stop the administration from going to war without consulting Congress. We need more members to be cosponsors to show the Trump administration that going to war with Iran would be unconstitutional. Can you help us by telling your representative in Congress to cosponsor H.R.2354 to prevent Trump from dragging us to war with Iran?
In one year, the Trump administration has:
Devastated Iran’s economy by reinstating sanctions. U.S. unilateral sanctions have plunged Iran’s economy into a deep recession and the soaring prices are hurting millions of ordinary citizens.
Asked for military options from the Pentagon to strike Iran.
Supported a violent regime-change group, Mujahideen-E-Khalq (MEK), which has little to no support from the people inside Iran.
Organized an anti-Iran summit in Warsaw, Poland to create a coalition of countries against Iran and pressure European countries to abandon the Iran nuclear deal.
Designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization to escalate conflict throughout the Middle East.
Demanded that countries stop importing Iranian oil and threatened to sanction countries like China, India, and Japan if they continue to purchase oil.
Announced the deployment of warships close to Iran, a clear provocation.
All of this is utterly absurd. Throughout this entire year, Iran has continued to comply with the Iran nuclear agreement, despite all the pressures from the U.S. to abandon it. But with little to gain, Iran has recently opted out of portions of the deal. If other countries don’t shield Iran from devastating U.S. sanctions, it might opt to abandon the deal altogether.
Let’s make this clear: the citizens of Iran continue to be the main victims of Trump’s warmongering policies. The U.S. is taking tactics from the Iraq playbook, such as exaggerating the threat of Iran’s nuclear program and painting Iran as a threat to the United States.
Right now, the Trump administration is choking Iranians with an economic war and is laying the groundwork for possible escalation. If left unchecked, this government will take us down a path to another unauthorized war. That is why we are calling on Congress to invoke the War Powers Resolution to reaffirm that the Trump administration cannot go to war without prior Congressional authorization. Going to war with Iran would be unconstitutional—and catastrophic.
Towards peace with Iran,
CodePink, a UFPJ member group, and the UFPJ Coordinating Committee
