Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) walked right into a rhetorical trap set by comedian and HBO host Bill Maher on Friday, criticizing a statement he believed came from President Donald Trump about the military action in Iran only to find out that it was former President Barack Obama who said it in defense of his own actions in Libya.
Schiff was clearly taken aback when Maher informed him the statement — regarding whether or not the administration could carry out military strikes without congressional approval — had come from the Obama administration regarding Libya, and quickly backpedaled.
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Bill Maher sets up Sen. Adam Schiff by reading a vague quote justifying military action. Schiff blasts it as “totally vague,” assuming it’s about Trump’s Iran strikes.
Maher then reveals: “Okay, cause that’s from Obama about Libya.”<a href="https://t.co/PqNdpCeDqA">pic.twitter.com/PqNdpCeDqA</a>
— Brandon Straka #WalkAway (@BrandonStraka) <a href="https://twitter.com/BrandonStraka/status/2030293293272363264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 7, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;This statement from the administration: &#8216;The president had the constitutional authority to direct the use of military force because he could reasonably determine that such use of force was in the national interest.&#8217; That’s too vague for you?&#8221; Maher asked Schiff.
&#8220;Totally vague,&#8221; Schiff agreed.
Maher dropped the other shoe then, saying, &#8220;OK. Because that’s from Obama about Libya.&#8221;
Schiff, obviously set back on his heels, scrambled to reassess and landed on Obama&#8217;s actions with regard to Syria. &#8221;
Well, Obama made the argument, um, initially that he could go into Syria without an authorization,” the senator said while trying to gather himself, adding that he opposed the move.
“I and many others pushed back on that argument. Ultimately, he did not go forward with going after Assad — even though Assad was gassing his own people — because he thought he might lose the vote in Congress,&#8221; Schiff said. &#8220;But I respect the fact that, uh, that was important to [Obama], and the fact that he did not have the support of Congress meant that we weren’t going to go forward.&#8221;
Schiff opted not address the source of the initial statement — the action in Libya — where the Obama administration engaged in military action that lasted for months and was challenged by Congress as an &#8220;illegal&#8221; and &#8220;unauthorized&#8221; action. The House voted against authorizing the action in Libya in June of 2011, and a bipartisan group of ten House members <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/10-us-lawmakers-sue-obama-over-libya-strikes/">filed suit</a> against the Obama administration for bypassing Congress in order to pursue military action without approval.

Adam Schiff

WATCH: Bill Maher Tricks Adam Schiff, Who Thought He Was Criticizing Donald Trump

Barack Obama

Bill Maher

Donald Trump

Iran

Media

Military

Politics

After one week of military action in Iran, directed by President Donald Trump and undertaken alongside Israel, the White House has released a series of hype videos designed to stir up pride and confidence in the United States military.
While U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has released a number of videos showing American assets successfully striking specific targets, The White House took clips from those and spliced in pop culture references — everything from movie clips to professional sports plays — to drive the point home.
Some of the hype videos just featured an added soundtrack dubbed over videos of American missiles striking Iranian targets.
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No pause. No hesitation. 💥 <a href="https://t.co/TTjS98VKAb">pic.twitter.com/TTjS98VKAb</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2029570036541649405?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Another showed several large explosions, cutting after each one to a clip of Spongebob Squarepants saying, &#8220;You wanna see me do it again?&#8221;
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Will not stop until the objectives are met.
Unrelenting. Unapologetic. 🔁 <a href="https://t.co/iM9fqjn1zc">pic.twitter.com/iM9fqjn1zc</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2029657893155311927?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
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A montage of movie clips followed — with a caption reading, &#8220;JUSTICE THE AMERICAN WAY&#8221; — featuring everything from &#8220;Braveheart&#8221; and &#8220;Tropic Thunder&#8221; to &#8220;Deadpool&#8221; and &#8220;Top Gun.&#8221;
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JUSTICE THE AMERICAN WAY. 🇺🇸🔥 <a href="https://t.co/0502N6a3rL">pic.twitter.com/0502N6a3rL</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2029741548791853331?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The popular video game &#8220;Grand Theft Auto&#8221; made an appearance in one video that showed a male character walking down an alley followed by an explosion. The word &#8220;wasted&#8221; appeared on the screen in red as the target was obliterated.
&#8220;OPERATION EPIC FURY • Destroy Iran’s missile arsenal.• Destroy their navy.• Ensure they NEVER get a nuclear weapon. Locked in,&#8221; the caption read.
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OPERATION EPIC FURY
• Destroy Iran’s missile arsenal. 
• Destroy their navy. 
• Ensure they NEVER get a nuclear weapon.
Locked in. <a href="https://t.co/ika3MMJmZT">pic.twitter.com/ika3MMJmZT</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2029953667600646655?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Pure American dominance&#8221; was the caption on a video featuring a series of Major League Baseball players swinging away — and then cutting to Iranian targets being blown sky high.
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Pure American dominance. 💥🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/nvgWLar2ak">pic.twitter.com/nvgWLar2ak</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2030015671820509202?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The most recent video featured clips of NFL players getting hit, over and over again, cutting away at the moment of impact to show explosion after explosion.
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Touchdown <a href="https://t.co/aDNdqBdRzG">pic.twitter.com/aDNdqBdRzG</a>
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/2030051395294941427?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Not everyone enjoyed the videos, however. CNN anchor Jake Tapper complained about them on Friday, saying that the White House had been &#8220;releasing what we will charitably call hype videos about their war.&#8221; After sharing the video, he added, &#8220;Are you not amused? That&#8217;s one of the &#8216;Grand Theft Auto&#8217; video games spliced in between footage of U.S. strikes.&#8221;
Tapper shared a second video from earlier in the week that was made in similar fashion but had used clips from the &#8220;Call of Duty&#8221; game.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung shared Tapper&#8217;s segment, adding the caption, &#8220;Credit where credit is due. Thank you to @CNN for covering all of our banger videos.&#8221;
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Credit where credit is due. Thank you to <a href="https://twitter.com/CNN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CNN</a> for covering all of our banger videos. <a href="https://t.co/OAnMR3yrjA">pic.twitter.com/OAnMR3yrjA</a>
— Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) <a href="https://twitter.com/StevenCheung47/status/2030050037934252125?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Actor Ben Stiller also <a href="https://x.com/BenStiller/status/2029989426948870182">complained</a> about the videos, objecting specifically to the few seconds from his film &#8220;Tropic Thunder&#8221; that appeared in one of the White House videos. &#8220;Hey White House, please remove the Tropic Thunder clip. We never gave you permission and have no interest in being a part of your propaganda machine. War is not a movie.&#8221;
Stephen L. Miller pushed back on Stiller, saying, &#8220;I mean everything aside, Tropic Thunder&#8217;s main plot is that war is a movie.&#8221;

Screenshot/The White House

The White House Hype Videos On Strikes In Iran Are Unlike Anything You’ve Ever Seen

The White House Hype Videos On Its War In Iran Are Unlike Anything You've Ever Seen

Global Politics

White House

The House of Representatives failed to pass a War Powers Resolution on Thursday over Operation Epic Fury in Iran, just one day after a Senate vote on the unlikely effort to halt military action against the country until Congress signs off on it.
The vote was 219-212, with most Republicans voting against the proposal and most Democrats voting for the resolution.
The House push was led by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), as Khanna argued on the House floor Wednesday that “the world needs a new moral vision.”
“The world needs an America that finds its moral center, Mr. Speaker,” he said.
“Let us rise to this historic challenge, in this body let us declare with courage and clarity that we reject this illegal and unjust war in Iran. Let us choose moral renewal over further moral decay,” the California lawmaker added.
Massie said in an X post earlier on Thursday that “the VOTE IS TODAY, but we’ve already won by forcing a debate and a vote.”
The Senate effort was led by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rand Paul (R-KY), but it failed 53-47 on Wednesday.
“Congress hereby directs the President to remove the United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Iran, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or a specific authorization for use of military force,” the Senate resolution stated.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) explained her vote against the resolution in a lengthy X post on Wednesday, explaining that the resolution “would send the wrong message to Iran and to our troops.”
“The Administration has adhered to the provisions of the War Powers Act that require notification to Congress within 48 hours of hostilities commencing, and it has provided numerous classified briefings to Congress,” she wrote.
The nature of the resolution, even if the Senate and House did successfully pass it, is likely a lost cause, given that the president would have to give it the final stamp of approval, according to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-vote-iran-war-powers-resolution-trump/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a>.
Republicans have primarily been in support of the recent military actions, whereas Democrats have largely been against them, with the notable exception of Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania.
Operation Epic Fury kicked off over the weekend, resulting in the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of other top Iranian leaders. Many Democrats have argued that the threshold has not been met to justify military action, with Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) stating that the president “has presented no evidence that Iran or its nuclear program — which he falsely claimed to have ‘obliterated’ — pose an imminent threat to the United States, or that diplomacy was exhausted.”
Trump said on Thursday that the U.S. will need to play a direct role in deciding who is put in charge of the large Middle Eastern nation.
&#8220;We&#8217;re going to have to choose that person along with Iran. We&#8217;re going to have to choose that person,&#8221; the president told <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trump-tells-reuters-us-will-have-role-choosing-irans-next-leader-2026-03-05/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reuters</a>.

US-ISRAEL-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY-TRUMP-NETANYAHU

Capitol Hill Takes New Shot At Trump’s Iran War Powers

Congress

Ro Khanna

Senate

Thomas Massie

A Senate Armed Services Committee hearing went sideways on Wednesday when an anti-war protester and Green Party candidate attempted to disrupt the proceedings, shouting, &#8220;No one wants to fight for Israel!&#8221;
The protester, identified as Brian McGinnis, a Marine Corps veteran and Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate in North Carolina, had to be dragged from the hearing by Capitol Police — and when he grabbed onto a door to prevent them from removing him, Senator Tim Sheehy (R-MT) jumped into action as well.
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🚨 UPDATE: New video from the moments BEFORE the Sen. Sheehy intervened show the veteran aggressively resisting US Capitol Police’s attempts to remove him from the hearing following his interruption
THREE officers were treated for injuries by DC EMS, per USCP
You can also… <a href="https://t.co/nZdSHpw9dB">pic.twitter.com/nZdSHpw9dB</a>
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) <a href="https://twitter.com/nicksortor/status/2029346900898377897?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
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The initial confrontation showed McGinnis, wearing his Marine Corps dress uniform as he resisted, flailing and attempting to use his body weight against the officers who were trying to get him out of the room. When Capitol Police were finally able to get him to the door, he could be seen grabbing the door, wedging his arm between the door and the frame.
Sheehy, a retired Navy SEAL, assisted the officers in their efforts, pausing only briefly to help pry McGinnis&#8217;s hand from the door.
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Senator Sheehy joined Capitol Police in lifting up and ejecting anti war protestor Brian McGinnis from a SASC subcommittee hearing. McGinnis is a Green Party candidate running for Senate in N.C. An antiwar activist filmed the video below: <a href="https://t.co/0dVA0ORWXQ">pic.twitter.com/0dVA0ORWXQ</a>
— Alan He (@alanhe) <a href="https://twitter.com/alanhe/status/2029301477341061613?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;No one wants to fight for Israel!&#8221; McGinnis shouted, apparently referencing Operation Epic Fury, the joint campaign with Israel against the Iranian regime.
Another protester could be heard shouting as Sheehy tried — with no luck — to pull McGinnis&#8217;s hand away from the door, claiming that Sheehy had broken the candidate&#8217;s hand: &#8220;A U.S. Senator just broke the hand of a Marine!&#8221;
Back on his feet, McGinnis complained that his hand was stuck, and several Capitol Police officers continued to attempt to free him from the door.
Sheehy responded to the incident in a post on X, saying, &#8220;Capitol Police were attempting to remove an unhinged protestor from the Armed Services hearing. He was fighting back. I decided to help out and deescalate the situation. This gentleman came to the Capitol looking for a confrontation, and he got one. I hope he gets the help he needs without causing further violence.&#8221;
Capitol Police also released a statement following the altercation, telling <a href="https://dailymontanan.com/2026/03/04/montana-sen-sheehy-gets-in-altercation-with-anti-war-protester/">The Daily Montanan</a>, &#8220;This afternoon, an unruly man who started to illegally protest during a hearing, put everyone in a dangerous position by violently resisting and fighting our officer’s attempts to remove him from the room.&#8221;
The statement also said that McGinnis was treated for an unspecified injury — but that three of the Capitol Police officers also had to be treated for injuries as a result of his actions.
McGinnis faces three counts of  &#8220;resisting arrest and crowding, obstructing, and incommoding for the unlawful demonstration&#8221; as well as three counts of assaulting a law enforcement officer.
&#8220;Protests are not allowed inside the Congressional Buildings. There are plenty of other spots on Capitol Grounds, outside, where demonstrations are allowed,&#8221; the statement added.

House Hearing Examines Current Readiness Of U.S. Joint Force

Watch Navy SEAL Senator Help Cops Drag Out ‘Unhinged’ Anti-War Protester

Protest

Tim Sheehy

U.S. Senate

Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) has remained skeptical of the Trump administration&#8217;s &#8220;Operation Epic Fury,&#8221; despite previously saying he could support the use of military force against Iran.
In a statement over the weekend, the Georgia Democrat said President Donald Trump “has presented no evidence that Iran or its nuclear program – which he falsely claimed to have &#8216;obliterated’ – pose an imminent threat to the United States, or that diplomacy was exhausted.”
“Iran&#8217;s support for terrorism and uranium enrichment have long destabilized the region. But sending American forces into harm&#8217;s way should only ever be a last resort,” he added, warning against what he described as a potential “regime change war-of-choice.”
Ossoff said he plans to back a War Powers Resolution in Congress, expressing frustration that the military operation occurred “without the consent of Congress.&#8221; The Senate is expected to vote on Wednesday on a resolution aimed at limiting further U.S. military action, according to <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-vote-iran-war-powers-resolution-trump/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CBS News</a>.
However, Ossoff struck a different tone during a 2017 congressional debate, when he said he would support military actions under certain circumstances.
“If Iran poses an imminent threat to Israel, to the United States, to any of our allies, then we should use force to prevent them from striking our allies,” Ossoff said at the time.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Georgia 6th District Debate on WSB-TV: Jon Ossoff and Karen Handel" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5aMlKhn401U?start=3420&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
“And as we seek to ensure that Iran does not develop a nuclear weapons capability, if economic policy, diplomatic policy, are unsuccessful in dissuading them from developing a nuclear weapon, then we should be prepared to use force if necessary,” he said.
The Daily Wire reached out to Sen. Ossoff&#8217;s office and campaign to clarify what threshold he believes would justify military action and whether his position has changed.
Democrats have largely criticized the operation, though some have voiced support. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) has defended the strikes.
“Every member in the U.S. Senate agrees we cannot allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. I’m baffled why so many are unwilling to support the only action to achieve that,” Fetterman posted to X on Monday. “Empty sloganeering vs. commitment to global security — which is it?”
The debate is likely to spill into the campaign season. Ossoff is up for re-election this November in a race the Cook Political Report ranks as a “toss-up.” He could face Reps. Mike Collins or Buddy Carter, or former football coach Derek Dooley, depending on who wins the Republican primary.
“Jewish Georgians deserve a Senator they can count on to fight the antisemitism rampant in the Democrat Party. But Jon Ossoff says one thing in Georgia and then does another in D.C. — caving to pro-Hamas radicals,” Nick Puglia, National Republican Senatorial Committee Regional Press Secretary, said in a statement.

Jon Ossoff

OSSOFF FLIP-FLOP: Georgia Dem Was For Hitting Iran — Until Trump Did It

Israel

A CNN senior military analyst said on Tuesday that the demonstration of military force and precision on display in Operation Epic Fury was enough to make the political leadership in both Russia and China sit up and take notice.
Admiral James Stavridis (Ret.) joined anchor Kasie Hunt on &#8220;The Arena with Kasie Hunt,&#8221; where he argued that in addition to capturing the complete attention of global adversaries, the United States was also progressively weakening both Russia and China as it weakened Iran.
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🚨NEW: CNN Senior Military Analyst James Stavridis🇺🇸
&#8220;If you are Xi or Putin, you have to RESPECT the military capability. What the US Military has done in the last 2 months is EXTRAORDINARY. It&#8217;ll get your attention in Beijing &amp; Moscow. Weakening Iran weakens Russia &amp; China.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/CmWMLfxtwY">pic.twitter.com/CmWMLfxtwY</a>
— Jason Cohen 🇺🇸 (@JasonJournoDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/JasonJournoDC/status/2028961128651395234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;If you are Xi or Putin, you hate us, but you have to respect the military capability of the United States,&#8221; Stavridis explained. &#8220;And it&#8217;s Midnight Hammer, it&#8217;s the snatch-and-grab on Maduro, and now a pretty massive bombing campaign. And yeah, we&#8217;ll have some missteps and some foot faults here and there, but when you look at the span of what the U.S. military has done in the last two months, it&#8217;s pretty extraordinary, it&#8217;ll get your attention in Beijing and Moscow.&#8221;
Stavridis went on to say that he didn&#8217;t believe the United States had attacked Iran solely to demonstrate strength — although that was certainly a byproduct of the campaign — but because every hit that damages Iran also strategically weakens both Russia and China, although for different reasons.
&#8220;By weakening Iran, you are weakening Russia, you are weakening China,&#8221; he said. &#8220;China looks at Iran as a big investment opportunity. Russia looks at Iran as an arms and technology supplier. Many of the drones flying in Ukraine today were made in Iran. So there&#8217;s a geopolitical pragmatism that can affix itself to these strikes in terms of degrading both Russia and China.&#8221;
As Operation Epic Fury, undertaken alongside Israel, stretched into its fifth day, War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that U.S. naval assets had destroyed a hefty portion of the Iranian regime&#8217;s navy — and that American forces had set their sights on cutting off access to and from Iranian airspace.

US admiral James Stavridis in Athens

CNN Military Analyst Says Operation Epic Fury Weakens China, Russia

China

Operation Epic Fury

Pete Hegseth

Russia

The United States Navy employed a method not seen since World War II to sink an Iranian warship, using a torpedo to take out the regime vessel that mistakenly &#8220;thought it was safe in international waters.&#8221;
War Secretary Pete Hegseth described the scene during a Wednesday morning press briefing, sharing video of the strike and drawing another comparison to the Second World War as he said that America&#8217;s military was unequivocally &#8220;fighting to win.&#8221;
WATCH:
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<a href="https://t.co/PiqQpVIrMu">https://t.co/PiqQpVIrMu</a> <a href="https://t.co/Wc1e0B0um7">pic.twitter.com/Wc1e0B0um7</a>
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) <a href="https://twitter.com/DeptofWar/status/2029193757162139762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;An American submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters,&#8221; Hegseth said. &#8220;Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo — quiet death — the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II. Like in that war — back when we were still the War Department — we are fighting to win.&#8221;
The White House showed video of the strike, and the War Department followed with two still photos of the Iranian warship, one immediately after the torpedo strike and the other shortly afterward as it fully capsized.
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<a href="https://t.co/J4grAgoqxc">https://t.co/J4grAgoqxc</a> <a href="https://t.co/szOofLkh9W">pic.twitter.com/szOofLkh9W</a>
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) <a href="https://twitter.com/DeptofWar/status/2029203986314919960?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 4, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Torpedoes were used to significant effect during World War II despite a number of early issues, including some that failed to detonate and others that ran too deep — sometimes 10-15 feet below their intended targets. All told, American submarines sank more than 1,100 shipping vessels and 214 warships using the Mark-14 torpedo in the Pacific theater, all contributing to a successful blockade of the Empire of Japan.
Both President Donald Trump and Hegseth have been clear about the goals of Operation Epic Fury, the military campaign undertaken alongside Israel against the Iranian regime, and have said that hobbling the regime&#8217;s navy was one key objective.
As the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) posted days earlier, American military assets have already made great strides toward that objective, sinking several Iranian vessels in the Gulf of Oman. The Iranian regime typically used those vessels to harass international shipping lanes in the area, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-u-s-blows-iranian-warship-out-of-the-water-erases-regime-fleet">CENTCOM</a> effectively declared on Monday that such actions would no longer be tolerated.
&#8220;Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades,&#8221; CENTCOM captioned a video of another American strike taking out an Iranian vessel. &#8220;Those days are over.&#8221;

Screenshot/WarDept

U.S. Submarine Unleashes Method Not Seen Since World War II On Iranian Target

While critics of President Donald Trump&#8217;s foreign policy push the narrative that his Iran strikes are dividing MAGA, a closer look at the data suggests that any cracks are at the surface rather than deep in the president&#8217;s Republican base.
The RealClearPolitics <a href="https://www.realclearpolling.com/polls/approval/donald-trump/issues/military-action-iran">Average</a> showed that overall support for Operation Epic Fury, the joint military campaign undertaken by the United States and Israel over the weekend, had the president underwater a bit with 39% approving of the action and 52% disapproving.
A breakdown of some of the individual polls showed that Republicans were united on the issue, with no one poll showing more than 18% opposing military action in Iran. The vast majority of the disapproval came from Democrats — who were also fairly united — and, to a lesser extent, independents.
A <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/poll-trump-administration-iran-war-goals/">CBS/YouGov</a> poll taken between March 2 and March 3, for example, showed that just 10% of Democrats approved of military action in Iran and 90% disapproved. Among independents, 63% opposed the action and 37% were in favor. A majority of Republicans (85%) supported military action and just 15% did not.
A similar result came from a <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16eShJoxX7NNcoSPkAsymnz8loVbgDrC9HztvcTpS22Y/edit?gid=0#gid=0">Washington Post poll</a> taken on March 1, which showed Democrat opposition at 87% and support at 9%. On the Republican side, 81% approved and 12% did not — and independents once again fell in the middle, with 59% against military action and 28% in favor of it.
A <a href="https://www.ipsos.com/sites/default/files/ct/news/documents/2026-03/Reuters%20Ipsos%20Iran%20Airstrike%20Topline%203.1.2026.pdf">Reuters/Ipsos</a> survey followed the same pattern, with 5% of Democrats supporting military action in Iran and 95% against it. Republicans came out largely in favor of military action, showing 82% approving and 18% disapproving. Among independents, 67% disapproved and 29% supported the action.
The apparent outlier included in the average was a poll from <a href="https://insideradvantage.com/iran-flash-survey-top-line-tabs/">InsiderAdvantage</a> taken on February 28, but it still showed similar numbers from Republicans: 79.3% in favor and 12% opposed. The numbers for Democrats shifted slightly, with 62.5% disapproving and 32.1% approving. Independents also showed much higher numbers in favor of military action, with 45.3% supporting and 40.3% opposing.
Sentiments had been moving in Trump&#8217;s favor, if only slightly, just prior to the first strikes, however. A <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cbs-news-poll-americans-views-on-iran-prior-to-conflict/">CBS/YouGov</a> poll taken on February 24 showed 47% in favor of Trump taking military action to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and 53% opposed. Just three days later, 51% were in favor and 49% opposed.
A <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/fox-news-poll-views-divided-us-action-against-iran">Fox News poll</a> conducted between February 28 and March 2 showed overall approval and disapproval deadlocked at 50% on either side — but also showed that a majority (61%) view Iran as a national security threat.
Among Republicans, as in the other polls, the sentiment lies primarily (84%) on the side of taking military action against Iran. Among independents, support for military action was just under half, at 40% — and only 20% of Democrats were in favor.
The Fox News poll went a bit deeper as well, noting that among those who had served in the military, a majority (59%) favored the campaign against the Iranian regime and 39% opposed it.

President Trump Delivers The State Of The Union Address

MAGA Unity: Polls Show Republicans Opposed To Trump’s Iran Strikes Are Loud, Small Minority

MAGA Unity: Republicans Opposed To Trump Iran Strikes Are Loud, Small Minority

Polls

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said on Tuesday that he didn&#8217;t understand a reporter&#8217;s question comparing President Donald Trump&#8217;s recent military action in Iran with former President Barack Obama&#8217;s military action in Libya in 2011.
Jeffries took the question from Fox News congressional correspondent Bill Melugin, who referenced 2011 comments from then House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). At the time, Pelosi had insisted that Obama did not need prior authorization from Congress to strike Libya, nor did he need authorization to continue military action there.
WATCH:
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NEW: I asked House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) about Nancy Pelosi saying in 2011 that President Obama didn&#8217;t need Congressional approval to bomb Libya, but Dems now say President Trump needs approval to bomb Iran?
Jeffries said Iran is &#8220;very different&#8221; &amp; told me &#8220;I… <a href="https://t.co/SkLr1R5wr1">pic.twitter.com/SkLr1R5wr1</a>
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) <a href="https://twitter.com/BillMelugin_/status/2028932152126054616?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;House Democrats say Trump needs that approval to bomb Iran,&#8221; Melugin said. &#8220;What&#8217;s the difference?&#8221;
&#8220;Well, obviously, Libya and the circumstances connected to that were very different than the circumstance that we face in Iran right now,&#8221; Jeffries said, adding, &#8220;I mean, I don&#8217;t even understand the genesis or basis of that question, not suggesting you&#8217;re asking it in bad faith.&#8221;
&#8220;Libya went on for seven months,&#8221; Melugin pointed out.
&#8220;But I&#8217;ve said — as I&#8217;ve indicated — first of all, I was not in Congress at the time, so we&#8217;re dealing with what we&#8217;re dealing with right now, which is a catastrophic endless war as Donald Trump has characterized it,&#8221; Jeffries claimed despite the fact that the current operation was just over 72 hours old and Trump&#8217;s initial prediction was that the mission could be accomplished in a matter of weeks.
Jeffries went on to complain that the Trump administration had acted without intelligence indicating &#8220;a preeminent attack on the United States&#8221; or American interests and claimed that if such action was necessary, it meant that the president had not been telling the truth when he said that the airstrikes last year had completely wiped out Iran&#8217;s nuclear program.
Multiple Democrats — including Jeffries — have criticized Trump for authorizing action against Iran without first consulting Congress for authorization. Secretary of State <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rubio-unloads-on-reporter-who-asks-why-trump-didnt-notify-congress-before-striking-iran">Marco Rubio</a> explained that the Gang of Eight had been informed, and then cited the War Powers Resolution of 1973 to assert that the Trump administration had done things by the book.
The War Powers Resolution states that the president can engage in military action for up to 48 hours without informing Congress, and can continue to wage war for up to 60 days — with an additional 30 days for any necessary troop drawdowns — without going to Congress for authorization. As Rubio also noted, no presidential administration — Republican or Democrat — has ever accepted the War Powers Resolution as constitutional.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) Holds News Conference

Top Dem Squirms When Obama Libya Flashback Collides With Iran Strike Outrage

Hakeem Jeffries

Libya

The latest video from United States Central Command (CENTCOM) shows a montage of missile launches, displaying the &#8220;unrelenting overwhelming firepower&#8221; unleashed by American naval destroyers since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury over the weekend.
The United States — in conjunction with Israel — began a full-scale military operation against the Iranian regime on Saturday, and CENTCOM&#8217;s video gave a brief picture of the sheer force being exerted by American military assets abroad.
WATCH:
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U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers are delivering unrelenting, overwhelming firepower from regional waters. DAY and NIGHT. <a href="https://t.co/3YTiFkFc1V">pic.twitter.com/3YTiFkFc1V</a>
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/2028875984519205384?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers are delivering unrelenting, overwhelming firepower from regional waters. DAY and NIGHT,&#8221; the caption reads. The video clocks in at just 51 seconds long, and delivers nine consecutive missile launches from U.S. Navy destroyers.
Since Operation Epic Fury launched on Saturday, CENTCOM has been keeping the world apprised of its actions via a series of videos posted to X. Just an hour prior to the video showing the missile launches, CENTCOM shared another video showing American weapons taking out Iranian mobile missile launchers.
&#8220;U.S. forces are hunting these threats down and without apology or hesitation, we are taking them out,&#8221; the caption read, in part.
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The Iranian regime is using mobile launchers to indiscriminately fire missiles in an attempt to inflict maximum harm across the region. U.S. forces are hunting these threats down and without apology or hesitation, we are taking them out. <a href="https://t.co/gv1SfKCrk4">pic.twitter.com/gv1SfKCrk4</a>
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/2028825605114904776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Another video <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-u-s-blows-iranian-warship-out-of-the-water-erases-regime-fleet">shared on Monday</a> showed United States military assets taking out Iranian ships in the Gulf of Oman — where traditionally, Iranian naval vessels would harass any ships attempting to use the international shipping lanes — and declared a quick and decisive end to Iran&#8217;s days of controlling the Gulf.
&#8220;Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades. Those days are over,&#8221; CENTCOM declared.
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Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades. Those days are over. Freedom of maritime navigation has underpinned American and global… <a href="https://t.co/nzdkMVMqZC">pic.twitter.com/nzdkMVMqZC</a>
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/2028553001644736808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 2, 2026</a></blockquote>
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U.S. Navy missile launch

U.S. Military Drops New Iran Strike Video — And The BOOM Looks Bigger Than Ever

Iran Airstrike

U.S. Military

World

The United States Central Command (U.S. CENTCOM) released video footage on Monday of missile strikes taking out Iranian naval vessels in the Gulf of Oman, after announcing that the Iranian regime had &#8220;harassed&#8221; its last vessel in the international shipping lane.
&#8220;Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades,&#8221; the caption read. &#8220;Those days are over. Freedom of maritime navigation has underpinned American and global economic prosperity for more than 80 years. U.S. forces will continue to defend it.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Two days ago, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman, today they have ZERO. The Iranian regime has harassed and attacked international shipping in the Gulf of Oman for decades. Those days are over. Freedom of maritime navigation has underpinned American and global… <a href="https://t.co/nzdkMVMqZC">pic.twitter.com/nzdkMVMqZC</a>
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/2028553001644736808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 2, 2026</a></blockquote>
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President Donald Trump commented Sunday on the state of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bottom-of-the-sea-trump-declares-irans-navy-is-finished">Iran&#8217;s Navy</a> just one day into Operation Epic Fury — joint strikes undertaken with Israel against the Iranian regime — declaring it effectively finished. The majority of its warships have already been, or will very soon be, relegated to &#8220;floating at the bottom of the sea.&#8221;
&#8220;I have just been informed that we have destroyed and sunk 9 Iranian Naval Ships, some of them relatively large and important. We are going after the rest — they will soon be floating at the bottom of the sea, also! In a different attack, we largely destroyed their Naval Headquarters,&#8221; Trump wrote.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, if it is confirmed that nine vessels were destroyed, it would mark one of the most severe single-day blows ever dealt to Iran’s navy. The simultaneous destruction of the Iranian naval headquarters will further limit the regime&#8217;s ability to retaliate — or to continue operating with any real effectiveness.
Hobbling Iran&#8217;s Navy would make it impossible for the regime to exert the kind of pressure on international shipping that it has employed in years past, and will severely limit Iran&#8217;s ability to control the surrounding waters even for defensive purposes.

Screenshot/U.S. CENTCOM

WATCH: U.S. Blows Iranian Warship Out Of The Water, Erases Regime Fleet

Iranian navy

Fireballs obliterating defense sites, plumes of black smoke twisting into the Tehran skyline, and precision strikes flashing across the darkness — dramatic new footage released by the Israel Defense Forces shows what it says was a rapid seizure of air superiority over the Iranian capital within 24 hours of launching a joint assault with the United States.
The IDF says the Israeli Air Force carried out more than 700 sorties and unleashed thousands of munitions in a sweeping campaign designed to dismantle Iran’s military infrastructure at speed and scale.
“The Air Force cleared the way to Tehran within 24 hours,” the IDF said, adding that Israeli aircraft have been operating “with air superiority in the skies over Tehran” in recent hours.
The video shows fighter jets lifting off for strike missions, explosions ripping through Iranian air defense systems, and thick columns of smoke rising from targeted sites across the city. Interceptor missiles can also be seen streaking skyward as Israeli forces knock down waves of unmanned aerial vehicles launched from Iran toward Israeli territory.
According to the IDF, targets struck include ballistic missile launchers, military headquarters, air defense batteries, and command centers tied to what Israel describes as the Iranian regime’s terror apparatus.
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The Israel Defense Forces says it is striking targets in Tehran, releasing video strikes on defense systems. <a href="https://t.co/4JmoS5F53u">pic.twitter.com/4JmoS5F53u</a>
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) <a href="https://twitter.com/KassyAkiva/status/2028181310435422663?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 1, 2026</a></blockquote>
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At the same time, Israel’s multi-layered air defense network — including the Iron Dome system, which intercepts incoming aerial threats mid-flight — working alongside fighter jets and attack helicopters, has knocked down Iranian drones since the beginning of the operation, the military said.
The air campaign unfolds as part of a broader joint offensive between Israel and the United States targeting Iranian military assets across multiple fronts. President Donald Trump announced that United States forces, operating alongside Israel, have sunk multiple Iranian naval vessels and largely obliterated Tehran’s naval headquarters, signaling a coordinated push to degrade Iran’s land, air, and sea capabilities simultaneously.
Securing air superiority over a capital of nearly nine million people in less than a day marks a significant escalation. Control of the skies allows for sustained precision strikes and limits Iran’s ability to contest operations from above.
Israel says strikes in Tehran are ongoing, with additional attacks carried out in the heart of the city in recent minutes against remaining defense systems.
Iran has responded by launching drones and vowing retaliation, setting the stage for further exchanges as the confrontation intensifies.
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bottom-of-the-sea-trump-declares-irans-navy-is-finished?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Jordan+Schroeder&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=‘Bottom+Of+The+Sea’%3A+Trump+Declares+Iran’s+Navy+Is+Finished">‘Bottom Of The Sea’: Trump Declares Iran’s Navy Is Finished</a>

WATCH: Israeli Air Blitz Rocks Tehran As U.S.-Backed Offensive Redoubles Attacks

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