Schatz: Enough Is Enough. End The Iran War Now.

Video of Senator Schatz’s Remarks Available Here WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz, Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, reiterated his call for an end to the war in Iran. Speaking on the Senate floor, Schatz highlighted the economic toll the war has taken on Americans as prices have surged and underscored the Trump administration’s failure to achieve any of its own stated strategic objectives. “Tens of millions of Americans, all across the country and from every part of the political spectrum, sent a very, very clear message last week: enough is enough,” said Senator Schatz. “We need to end this war. It’s raising prices for everyone, everywhere. And it’s not making us any safer. This war has been a disaster on every level, and it needs to end now.” Senator Schatz continued, “These disastrous consequences were not only foreseeable – they were foreseen. Every president over the past few decades has been pitched specifically by Prime Minister Netanyahu to go to war with Iran. And every president of both parties has wisely rejected it. And that’s what makes the consequences of this war especially frustrating for so many Americans on both sides of the aisle. When Donald Trump said, “No new wars” – we believed him. And yet, here we are.” A transcript of Senator Schatz’s remarks is below. Video is available here . Tens of millions of Americans, all across the country and from every part of the political spectrum, sent a very, very clear message last week: enough is enough. We need to end this war. It’s raising prices for everyone, everywhere. And it’s not making us any safer. This war has been a disaster on every level, and it needs to end now. $2,000. That’s how much this war has cost American households already. Gas is just shy of 4 bucks a gallon nationally, and it’s even higher in Hawai‘i, at $5.63. Diesel is above 6 bucks after reaching a record high in September. Food prices are up because of fuel and fertilizer costs. And that includes beef, seafood, fruits, vegetables, dairy – everything is up. The president may have started this reckless adventure all on his own, but it’s the rest of us getting crushed at the pump, and at the grocery store, and everywhere we go. Now, his argument is that the short-term economic pain is worth the long-term security gain. Except for this: we’re in a weaker position today than we were at the start of the war. Just consider Trump’s own stated objectives. He wanted regime change, but the same regime is in place, only younger and more radical. He wanted to wipe out Iran’s nuclear program, only to turn around and say “I don’t care” about Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. He wanted to obliterate Iran’s missiles, and yet the missiles keep falling. He wanted the Strait of Hormuz to be open and free, which was the case before the war. But now we have destroyers and aircraft carriers babysitting commercial ships every time they cross the strait. That’s neither open nor free. And here’s the thing: these disastrous consequences were not only foreseeable – they were foreseen. Every president over the past few decades has been pitched specifically by Prime Minister Netanyahu to go to war with Iran. And every president of both parties has wisely rejected it. And that’s what makes the consequences of this war especially frustrating for so many Americans on both sides of the aisle. When Donald Trump said, “No new wars” – we believed him. This wasn’t Joe Biden, the former chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This wasn’t George W. Bush. This was the guy who campaigned not once, but twice, against endless wars in the Middle East. And yet, here we are. 10 months in, 23 American servicemembers are dead. Thousands of Iranian civilians, including women and children, have been killed. And people here at home and all around the world are having to choose between feeding their families and heating their homes and seeing a doctor because of acute shortages and skyrocketing prices. Enough is enough. There is broad recognition – from the president’s son and vice president on down – that this is not working. So let’s end it, and let’s end it together. Because every day this war goes on causes more pain and suffering for literally no reason at all. ###