Debate: Do Americans see Trump's Iran war as a quagmire?

[0:00] The president has got himself in America stuck in a quagmire of another war in the Middle [0:04] East. [0:05] He's desperately trying to extricate himself from his own mistakes. [0:09] My generation served in a quagmire in Iraq and Afghanistan. [0:12] The way you stain the troops when you tell them two months in, two months in, Congressman, [0:18] you should know better. [0:19] Shame on you. [0:20] Calling this a quagmire two months in. [0:22] The effort, what they've undertaken, what they've succeeded, the success on the battlefield [0:26] that creates strategic opportunities, the courage of a president to confront a nuclear Iran, [0:31] and you call it a quagmire, handing propaganda to our enemies, shame on you for that statement. [0:36] And statements like that are reckless to our troops. [0:39] Don't say I support the troops on one hand and then a two-month mission is a quagmire. [0:42] Who are you cheering for here? [0:44] Who are you pulling for? [0:45] Our troops are doing incredible work. [0:47] He is calling people who criticize the war saying they're against the troops. [0:52] Is that anywhere near fair? [0:53] Well, he's saying that what their rhetoric is not matching reality and their rhetoric [0:58] doesn't certainly help the war effort. [1:00] I mean, it's not a quagmire. [1:02] That is ridiculous. [1:03] We've been there two months. [1:04] Obama was in Libya for seven or eight months. [1:07] I don't recall Democrats worrying about the word quagmire back then. [1:10] And also Democrats, I think, have had a hard time grasping the mission, which Hague Seth [1:14] was quite clear about today. [1:15] The president's been clear about, which is we're not going to let Iran have a nuclear weapon. [1:19] And Democrats and Republicans have traditionally agreed on this goal for a very long time. [1:23] Now, it's only Trump who's decided to do something about it. [1:26] The blockade is working. [1:27] We're draining the Iranian economy. [1:29] They've got nowhere to put their oil. [1:30] A little patience here. [1:32] And this may turn out with exactly what we want, which is Iran not having a nuclear weapon. [1:37] That's the goal. [1:38] That's what we're headed for. [1:39] The people who think it's a quagmire are actually the American people. [1:41] That is why the approval for the president's war effort is in the 30s, not the 50s, the 60s, [1:47] like most military engagements, but in the 30s, because a broad majority of Americans are [1:52] concerned about the costs of the war, but they're also concerned about these goals you [1:57] just laid out not being achieved in any way, shape or form. [2:00] We all want, we are all against a nuclearized Iran. [2:04] Just to remind everyone, we had, we had a system where we had no nuclear, Iran had no nuclear [2:11] access, no nuclear weapons. [2:13] Pulse. [2:14] No, they had no nuclear weapons. [2:15] They have 970 pounds of enriched uranium. [2:16] They do not have nuclear weapons. [2:17] That is your lying when you say. [2:19] Did they not have it? [2:20] Did they have nuclear weapons? [2:21] They did not. [2:22] They have enriched uranium. [2:23] They did not have nuclear weapons. [2:24] And they are on the brink of having 11 bombs. [2:25] That's what Obama left us. [2:26] By the way, the brink, what is a brink? [2:28] A year, two years, 10 years? [2:29] Weeks. [2:30] The experts say weeks. [2:31] The issue right now is because of this war, the Iranians have something they never had [2:37] before, which is a chokehold on the global economy. [2:40] That choke, you're laughing. [2:42] But you know what? [2:43] You laugh at the pain that is causing people at the pump. [2:46] It's causing farmers. [2:47] I laugh at you. [2:48] You're cheering for Iran now. [2:49] Ridiculousness. [2:50] I'm not. [2:51] I'm saying nobody, actually the person who is, the people who have strengthened the IRGC [2:55] are the people who have engaged in this war and given them the chokehold. [2:59] You think they're strengthened? [3:00] Yes. [3:01] I think the IRGC is strengthened. [3:02] Oh, my God. [3:03] Actually, their hold on the Iranian people is stronger than ever. [3:06] You know, if they were so weak, why wouldn't they have run to get a negotiation already? [3:11] We are weeks into this with no final resolution. [3:15] If they were so desperate, why haven't they caged? [3:18] How long should it have taken? [3:19] Three hours? [3:20] Six hours? [3:21] Nine hours? [3:22] I don't know. [3:23] It's not my military strategy. [3:26] It's Donald Trump's military strategy. [3:28] I mean, you may call it unbelievable, but people are suffering in this country. [3:32] And I know. [3:33] No. [3:34] You know what's ridiculous? [3:35] I'm sorry. [3:36] What's ridiculous is that you laugh at the pain. [3:38] You can hear your voice. [3:39] Wish casting. [3:40] Wish casting about outcomes. [3:41] You laugh at the pain of Americans. [3:42] Okay. [3:43] Wish casting. [3:44] I'm concerned about the people of America. [3:45] Anytime somebody asks questions or makes a critique, to turn that into cheering for Iran, [3:53] it's just as disingenuous. [3:54] She said their IRGC is strengthened. [3:55] Do you agree with that? [3:56] You are. [3:57] They are strengthened. [3:58] They are strengthened. [3:59] They are strengthened. [4:00] They are strengthened. [4:01] I know that there hasn't been regime change the way that Donald Trump wants to tell us [4:05] there is. [4:06] Exactly. [4:07] I don't know if they are strengthened or not. [4:10] I think when this is over, we will know. [4:12] But I do know that asking legitimate questions, and I think a lot of the people in America [4:17] have questions about what we are doing, what it's costing, questions that were asked in [4:22] this hearing today, that doesn't mean you are cheering for Iran. [4:25] That means you are cheering for America. [4:27] Yes. [4:28] And let me just say this. [4:29] I don't think this hearing today served much of a purpose. [4:32] I think we've gotten used to these spectacles and performances in Congress where there is [4:38] a lot of screaming, often on both sides. [4:40] It's often Congress people screaming at the person testifying and the person testifying [4:44] screaming back at Congress. [4:46] In this case, it was a lot more one-sided. [4:49] It was Pete Hegseth doing most of the screaming. [4:51] I think Pete Hegseth bringing up how long we were in Vietnam or Iraq may not be as helpful [4:58] as he thinks to his argument because people have very bad memories about that. [5:04] You know, I don't think we learned much. [5:06] As an American people who want answers, I don't think we learned much. [5:09] The president doesn't have the luxury all the time of making foreign policy decisions [5:13] to weigh it against all gas prices and polling. [5:16] When there is a threat, he has to act on it. [5:19] He has to make a series of decisions that lead him to that. [5:22] Right now, two months into this, we have had a ceasefire for over a week, and we are [5:27] talking to the Iranians. [5:29] We have a blockade that has now 23 ships parked in Iran. [5:33] You know where that oil goes? [5:35] It goes to China. [5:36] It goes there. [5:37] And that will be very interesting to see what happens in Beijing when Xi and Trump meet. [5:41] Now, I don't know what him and Vladimir Putin talked about, but what I do know is this. [5:47] Secretary Hegseth tried to just pump, now he obviously robustly defended the president, [5:52] pushed back, made a bit of a spectacle, to be fair. [5:56] And I think it's not wrong for liberals and other Americans to have questions. [6:00] I think the administration should answer all of them. [6:03] It's not just liberals having questions. [6:04] No, I agree. [6:05] And I said all Americans. [6:06] But what I am saying is I don't believe hyperbole and using quagmire fits. [6:10] By the way, let's just note, Scott, you brought up a great point. [6:13] The economy is crashing. [6:15] And the truth is the Iranian military is a mess. [6:18] Right now, and noted in that Wall Street Journal article, when the economy collapses, the people rise up. [6:23] And at the end of the day, we want the people to have control of that government. [6:26] But the problem here is in the history of modern warfare, regime change is never achieved by air power alone. [6:34] Right? [6:35] The deterioration is. [6:37] But neither are they achieved by... [6:39] What about when you throw in the Navy? [6:41] Does that help? [6:42] Historically, it has not helped. [6:44] We're destroying their economy. [6:45] We're destroying their currency. [6:46] Scott, Scott, just for one second, stop the talking points. [6:48] Yeah, go ahead. [6:49] So, look... [6:50] The blockade is a talking point? [6:51] Is it not really happening? [6:52] Let's try to imagine what you would say if a Democratic president attacked Iran suddenly without making a case for war to the American people. [7:00] That, you know, and did it without any allies. [7:03] The problem is... [7:04] You seem to be mistaken about my views on Iran. [7:05] I think they're butchers and terrorists, and I think we're seven presidents too late. [7:08] I'd have been happy for anybody to drop anything but pallets of cash on them, John. [7:11] I think the Islamic Republic of Iran is a force for evil and obviously can't be allowed to be a nuclear power. [7:15] Congrats. [7:16] Welcome to the party. [7:17] But what the strike was in June seriously degraded their forces. [7:20] Agreed. [7:21] The problem is that the United States all of a sudden joined Israel very quickly without any case for war being made. [7:27] And now there is no plan to get out of this. [7:29] It is easy to blunder into war. [7:31] It is very hard to get out of it. [7:33] And that's why our allies are saying, we're not with the U.S. on this because no case was made. [7:37] That's why the war is unpopular at home, because no case has been made. [7:40] And as Teddy Roosevelt once said, it is unpatriotic and servile to not criticize your leaders, even in a time of war. [7:46] And I also think the fact is that Americans are paying for this war. [7:50] They are paying. [7:51] Gas prices went up again today to over 425 on average, over $100 barrels of oil. [7:57] Now, people here, you can say that's no big deal to the American public. [8:01] It's OK for them to bear that burden. [8:03] It is a big deal. [8:04] OK. [8:05] Hold on. [8:06] Well, I'm saying the point is here that people are bearing a burden. [8:08] And I don't think Republicans who cheerlead are acknowledging that pain. [8:13] The cost of the war is an issue with the American people. [8:16] And I think always has been just looking at how much things cost in comparison with what the problems are in the country, [8:23] which is why a lot of people and I think you can agree with this, Scott, why there are a lot of Republicans or those who were very diehard MAGA supporters [8:32] are concerned, if not angry, about going into this war because the president did say no new wars. [8:38] Let me let you hear. [8:39] The Pentagon CFO says that the cost of the war has been about $25 billion so far. [8:44] Let's listen. [8:45] So approximately at this day we're spending about $25 billion on Operation Epic Fury. [8:53] Most of that is munitions. [8:55] There's part of that is obviously O&M and equipment replacement. [8:58] We will formulate a supplemental through the White House that will come to Congress once we have a full assessment of the cost of the conflict. [9:04] So you're saying the full cost at this point is $25 billion? [9:07] Yeah, that's our estimate for the cost. [9:09] Okay. [9:10] Interesting because I'm glad you answered that question because we've been asking for a hell of a long time and no one's given us the number. [9:15] So we're getting a number there and an answer there. [9:18] To you, TW, is the cost worth it? [9:21] Do you think that the American people will look at this and say this has been worth it? [9:26] Well, I was glad to hear him say that a lot of that was for munitions replacement, especially after recent reporting and the Vice President saying I am concerned about it. [9:34] We should all be concerned about it. [9:36] There's a whole array of things that we have to deal with. [9:39] But we've also spent how much in Ukraine? [9:42] $300 billion over several years by some estimates. [9:46] Look, Russia's a threat. [9:47] I support Ukraine. [9:48] We should support Ukraine. [9:50] But this threat from Iran directly impacts the United States of America. [9:56] And I'm sorry. [9:57] I don't think imminent means it's sitting on a rocket launcher waiting to blow. [10:01] And one of the great things I think that the Trump administration is pushing that wasn't in the JCPOA was ballistics. [10:09] Making sure they can't get the technology to get it to our country and to our men and women overseas. [10:14] Do you have that deal? [10:15] Do they have that deal? [10:16] That's what we're working on. [10:17] Have the Iranians agreed to that deal? [10:19] I mean, I hope they get that deal. [10:20] We're trying to figure out who's in charge of so many of them. [10:22] Okay, but we don't have a negotiating partner. [10:26] So I think that's an issue here, which is you're laying out a series of goals. [10:31] And of course, we all want to do nuclearized Iran and not having a nuclear weapon. [10:36] But there is no assurance we're getting that at the end of the day. [10:39] In fact, their most recent negotiating tactic is to open the Strait of Hormuz and just put the nuclears aside.