Socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) responded to the U.S. military killing top terrorist targets in Iraq on Thursday by ignoring the facts of the situation and going all in to stop the Trump administration from further targeting enemies of the United States that have killed Americans.
“Last night the President engaged in what is widely being recognized as an act of war against Iran, one that now risks the lives of millions of innocent people,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted. “Now is the moment to prevent war & protect innocent people – the question for many is how, publicly & Congressionally.”
Ocasio-Cortez’s remarks come after the U.S. military used an MQ-9 Reaper drone to fire missiles on a convoy that was leaving Baghdad International Airport. The strike netted the deaths of Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, and top Iraqi paramilitary commander Abu Mahdi al-Mohandes, who headed the Iranian-linked Popular Mobilization Forces.
“Right now is the moment to decide if you are pro-peace or not. The cheerleaders of war, removed from its true cost, will gladly convince you that up is down – just as they did in Iraq in ‘03. But war does not establish peace. War does not create security. War endangers us all,” Ocasio-Cortez continued. “War advocates start off saying ‘we all want peace, but…’ or ‘it’s too late…’ & frame a pro-peace agenda as naïve to realpolitik. Don’t give into this gaslighting. The same folks selling us Iraq and selling us this latest provocation of violence. We cannot repeat this cycle.”
War advocates start off saying “we all want peace, but…” or “it’s too late…” & frame a pro-peace agenda as naïve to realpolitik.
Don’t give into this gaslighting. The same folks selling us Iraq and selling us this latest provocation of violence. We cannot repeat this cycle.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 3, 2020
Ocasio-Cortez completely ignored facts related to why the Trump administration decided to kill Soleimani, which have been confirmed by President Donald Trump, the Department of State, and the Department of Defense.
- Trump said: “The United States military successfully executed a flawless precision strike that killed the #1 terrorist anywhere in the world, Qasem Soleimani. Soleimani was plotting imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats and military personnel, but we caught him in the act and terminated him. … For years the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its ruthless Quds force under Soleimani’s leadership has targeted, injured, and murdered murder hundreds of American civilians and servicemen. … Soleimani made the death of innocent people his sick passion, contributing to terrorist plots as far as way as New Delhi and London. … Recently Soleimani led the brutal representation of protesters in Iran where more than 1,000 innocent civilians were tortured and killed by their own government.”
- The Department of Defense said: “General Soleimani was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service members in Iraq and throughout the region. General Soleimani and his Quds Force were responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American and coalition service members and the wounding of thousands more. He had orchestrated attacks on coalition bases in Iraq over the last several months – including the attack on December 27th – culminating in the death and wounding of additional American and Iraqi personnel. General Soleimani also approved the attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad that took place this week.”
- The Department of State said: “We can confirm that in the past several days, General Soleimani had been traveling in the Middle East coordinating further imminent large-scale attacks against U.S. diplomats and service members. These threats were highly credible and the intelligence is sound. General Soleimani’s travel also violated the ban imposed by the United Nations Security Council. Recent orders given by General Soleimani dramatically escalated Iran’s campaign of violence and terrorism against Americans and American interests in the Middle East. He orchestrated a series of attacks against American forces in Iraq in the past several months, culminating in the rocket attack on December 27, 2019, which resulted in the death of an American citizen, wounded four American service members, and threatened the lives of many more American personnel. General Soleimani also ordered the assault on the American Embassy in Baghdad. General Soleimani continued to command Iranian supported proxies in Iraq, which posed an escalating threat to the lives of Americans.”
“Congress now has a moral and legal obligation to reassert its power to stop this war and protect innocent people from horrific consequences. We have two immediate options: 1. Vote on a War Powers Resolution, which requires Trump to attain Congressional approval,” Ocasio-Cortez concluded. “2. Reintroduce & vote on @RepRoKhanna’s bipartisan NDAA amendment, which blocks $ offensive action to Iran. This amendment passed the House w/ bipartisan support not long ago, and was later gutted in negotiations. We can bring it back as a standalone bill.”
2. Reintroduce & vote on @RepRoKhanna’s bipartisan NDAA amendment, which blocks $ offensive action to Iran.
This amendment passed the House w/ bipartisan support not long ago, and was later gutted in negotiations. We can bring it back as a standalone bill.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 3, 2020