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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is demanding President Donald Trump and his senior officials “justify” the U.S. military’s recent strikes in Iran.
“We’ve seen no evidence to date that an offensive strike of this nature was justified under the War Powers Act or the Constitution,” Jeffries said.
“But the whole reason for the Trump administration to undertake that process is to come up to Capitol Hill and convince the American people and their elected representatives in the House and in the Senate. That hasn’t happened.”
Trump officials have maintained that the strike was in compliance with the War Powers Act, which requires the White House to notify Congress within 48 hours of a military action and blocks that operation from continuing for more than 60 days without approval from lawmakers.
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House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries criticized President Trump’s strikes on Iran. (Getty Images)
Jeffries claimed he had not seen “a scintilla of evidence to date” that shows “there was an imminent threat to the United States of America.”
“If the administration has evidence to the contrary, come up to present it. We’re not hard to find. I’m not hiding,” he said.
The House Democratic leader said he requested a briefing Tuesday for the Gang of Eight, the informal name for the top party and intelligence leaders in Congress.
Trump green-lit airstrikes on three of Tehran’s major nuclear sites over the weekend. The president said on Truth Social Monday that the areas hit were “completely destroyed.”
The move has sharply divided Democrats, with some pro-Israel moderates backing Trump’s move — while several progressives like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., have called for the president’s impeachment over the operation.
Dozens of left-wing lawmakers have gotten behind a bipartisan war powers resolution by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., to limit Trump’s ability to strike Iran.
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This map shows where the US targeted Iran over the weekend. (Fox News)
Meanwhile, Jeffries side-stepped multiple questions on those calls for impeachment during his press conference, instead reasserting his demand that Trump officials come before Congress.
“A tool that’s on the table right now is to continue to demand that the administration present itself before the United States Congress and make the case to the American people as to why this extraordinary step has been taken. That’s step one,” Jeffries said.
“Step two is for the War Powers Resolution, whether that’s the one that has already been introduced or others that may subsequently be introduced, for those resolutions to be debated on the House floor, as should have occurred already. And then we’ll see where we’re at thereafter.”
Pressed again on whether he was taking calls for Trump’s impeachment seriously, Jeffries said, “This is a dangerous moment that we’re in, and we’ve got to get through what’s in front of us. And what’s in front of us right now is the Trump administration has a responsibility to come to Congress, justify actions for which we’ve seen no evidence to justify its offensive strength in Iran.”
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called for Trump’s impeachment over his actions in Iran. (Angelina Katsanis/AP Photo)
When reached for comment on Jeffries’ demands for justification, the White House referred Fox News Digital to press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s comments on Fox News Monday morning.
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“The White House made calls to congressional leadership. They were bipartisan calls. In fact, Hakeem Jeffries couldn’t be reached. We tried him before the strike, and he didn’t pick up the phone, but he was briefed after, as well as [Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.], who was briefed prior to the strike,” Leavitt said.
“We gave these calls as a courtesy, and the Democrats are lying about this, because they can’t talk about the truth of the success of that operation and the success of our United States military and the success of this president and this administration in doing something that past administrations — Democrats too — have only dreamed about.”
