Alwaght- Two Democrats with US military experience who are vying for the party’s 2020 presidential nomination Slammed President Donald Trump for escalating tensions with Iran.
After the US President Donald Trump announced reinstating anti-Iranian economic sanctions two weeks ago, Iran in response partially stopped complying with some terms of the 2015 nuclear deal. It additionally released a 2-month ultimatum to the other signatories of the deal, asking them to practically show commitment to the accord in a way that Iran can tangibly use its benefits. Following the actions, the US announced deploying a naval strike group as well as bombers to the Persian Gulf region. However, the two sides’ officials kept emphasizing that they are not seeking a military confrontation. But the media play a key role in the escalation of the tensions by fueling the fire of speculations.
Representative Tulsi Gabbard, one of 24 Democrats vying for the White House nomination, said on ABC that Trump was “leading us down this dangerous path towards a war with Iran.”
“He says he doesn’t want it, but the actions of him and his administration, people like John Bolton and Mike Pompeo, tell us a very different story. They are setting the stage for a war with Iran that would prove to be far more costly, far more devastating and dangerous than anything that we saw in the Iraq war,” Gabbard said.
Gabbard, 38, enlisted in the US Army National Guard after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks and was twice deployed to the Middle East. Gabbard has said she is running for president to end regime-change wars, though she currently trails most of her 2020 opponents in opinion polls.
Another White House hopeful, Representative Seth Moulton, a 40-year-old former U.S. Marine Corps officer who did four tours in Iraq, told “This Week” that if the Trump administration sends additional troops to the Gulf it could “drag us into war.”
“Make no mistake, this is exactly what John Bolton wants to have happen,” said Moulton, who also trails in 2020 opinion polls. “The world is so dangerous when you have a weak commander in chief in the president of the United States.”
Moulton counts as a mentor former Vice President Joe Biden, who currently leads the 2020 Democratic field in support. When asked why Democratic primary voters should back him over his mentor, Moulton said: “I think it’s time for the generation that fought in Iraq and Afghanistan to take over for the generation that sent us there.”
Gabbard resigned her post at the Democratic National Committee in 2016 when Hillary Clinton was the nominee because she said the former secretary of state’s foreign policy positions were too hawkish. Gabbard was asked by ABC if that also applied to Biden, given both he and Clinton served in the Obama administration.
“We’ll see what Vice President Biden’s foreign policy vision is for this country. We may agree on some issues, disagree on others,” Gabbard said.
