Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) blamed President Donald Trump for Iranian missile launches against U.S. bases in Iraq on Tuesday evening, and suggested that America was unwilling and unable to fight back.
In a tweet posted Tuesday evening, just minutes after news reports that over a dozen missiles fired from Iran had hit bases where U.S. troops are housed, and before military officials had assessed the battle damage: Pelosi accused the Trump administration of “needless provocations” and declared that America “cannot afford war” with Iran:
Closely monitoring the situation following bombings targeting U.S. troops in Iraq. We must ensure the safety of our servicemembers, including ending needless provocations from the Administration and demanding that Iran cease its violence. America & world cannot afford war.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) January 8, 2020
Pelosi was attending the opening of a Washington, DC, restaurant earlier in the evening:
Nancy Pelosi at Danny Meyer’s Maialino Mare opening in Navy Yard. pic.twitter.com/OMkVtxeEEk
— Anna Spiegel (@AnnaSpiegs) January 8, 2020
She was reportedly meeting with her House caucus when she was informed about the attacks:
NEWS: I’m told @SpeakerPelosi was handed a note inside a House Democratic Caucus meeting just now about the missile attacks that Iran is now claiming responsibility for. She then left the room.
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) January 7, 2020
The tweet continued the theme Pelosi expounded in a letter Sunday to Democratic colleagues, in which she said Trump’s successful airstrike last week on Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, the leader of the terrorist Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who was responsible for hundreds of American deaths and recent attacks on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, was “provocative and disproportionate.” She also announced legislation designed to limit the Trump administration’s ability to respond militarily to whatever retaliatory action Iran would take.
Pelosi’s aim appears to be to portray the president as a national security risk, too dangerous to leave in office, as she pursues his impeachment and removal. She is also arguing for an alternative policy — one that effectively surrenders to Iran. She and her party appear to believe that losing a war to Iran is an acceptable cost if Trump can be deposed.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News. He earned an A.B. in Social Studies and Environmental Science and Public Policy from Harvard College, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. He is also the co-author of How Trump Won: The Inside Story of a Revolution, which is available from Regnery. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
This post has been updated to include more precise information about Pelosi’s whereabouts when informed of the attacks.
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