By David W. Marshall
(Trice Edney Wire) – Jason Dozier, an American hero, represents District 4 on the Atlanta City Council. After graduating from Denison University, he joined the U.S. Army, serving as a reconnaissance officer in Iraq and Afghanistan. His service as an Army officer earned him the Army Commendation Medal and the Bronze Star. After honorably leaving the Army, Dozier returned to Georgia to help address the challenges facing transitioning military veterans and their spouses. As a proud combat veteran, Dozier is speaking out against the current war in Iran. “The lack of a clear strategy or end state only undermines U.S. credibility globally,” Dozier told the Daily Beast. “As an Iraq War veteran, I’ve seen firsthand the costs of conflicts like this, and I had hoped those lessons would guide future decisions. Unfortunately, that doesn’t appear to be the case.”
Dozier is correct that our leaders have learned little from past mistakes, misinformation, and miscalculations by those currently occupying the White House, Congress, and Senate. According to Department of Defense statistics, the Iraq War killed 4, 492 U.S. soldiers and injured 32,292 more. An estimated 200,000 Iraqi civilians died in what amounted to an “unnecessary” war. The Iraq War began in spring 2003, with a U.S.-led coalition invasion to remove Saddam Hussein. Officials in the Bush officials justified the invasion by alleging Iraq possessed “Weapons of Mass Destruction” while actively pursuing nuclear capability. The war, presented to the American public as necessary to stop Saddam Hussein, was in fact an “unnecessary” because no evidence of weapons of mass destruction existed.
In a joint effort, the United States joined forces with Israel to launch an attack against Iran, echoing the flawed reasoning that led to war in Iraq. Since the initial assault, thousands of people have died, including 13 U.S. service members. Iran has taken steps to block the Strait of Hormuz, which is a strategic and vital shipping lane for roughly 20% of global oil. Iran, like Iraq 23 years ago, is an unnecessary war where evidence contradicts what the public is being told. Trump has continually justified this war by saying Iran was close to producing nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles. Experts and his own administration have contradicted the president on this point. In an assessment from last year, the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) said it would actually take nearly a decade for Iran to produce that type of weaponry.
From Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to false claims of an imminent Iranian threat, we now find ourselves in a situation where past lessons from Iraq are being widely ignored. Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, is one notable exception in the Trump administration to speak out. In his announcement stating his immediate resignation, Kent stated his reason for stepping down was the decision to begin a war against Iran when “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation.” Kent, nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate last year, posted his resignation letter on X, saying, he “cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives.” “I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Kent wrote. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.” Kent, as a high-ranking official in the Trump administration, had the courage to speak out and expose the truth to the American people despite the consequences.
President Trump has criticized and threatened America’s NATO allies. He now wants those same allies to help unblock the Strait of Hormuz. “This is not our war, we have not started it,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told reporters. As Jason Dozier mentions, given our nation’s lack of credibility, our allies should be highly concerned about both the abuse of power by the president and Congress’s failure to control him. They should be concerned that the legislative branch seems unwilling on the Republican side and unable on the Democratic side to restrain the reckless actions of the White House and the Pentagon.
The fact that the Republican-led House and Senate voted against a war powers resolution should be a major wake-up call to Americans and to our allies as well. Each member who killed the resolution felt no need to place limits on the war efforts of a president who has proven to be irrational. Each member who voted against the resolution totally ignored the misinformation surrounding the Iraq War and the claim of WMDs.
They ignored the DIA’s internal assessment and failure in its watchdog role. Our global partners are starting to suffer from Trump-fatigue, like many Americans, since the election. Our allies are starting to tell an unpredictable president “No.” The voters should do the same by voting against every Republican who killed the War Powers Resolution, starting by turning Texas blue in the upcoming Senate election. The sacrifice of every combat veteran from the Iraq War should not be in vain due to lawmakers who knowingly choose to make the same irresponsible decisions, while needlessly costing lives.
David W. Marshall is the founder of the faith-based organization TRB: The Reconciled Body and author of the book God Bless Our Divided America.
