GOP Sen. Mike Lee ridicules Trump administration's 'insulting' Soleimani briefing, backs Democrats' war powers resolution
Do not count Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) among the GOP lawmakers pleased with the Trump administration's classified briefing Wednesday on the U.S. strike that killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani in Iraq last week.
Lee was apparently furious after witnessing the closed-door discussions about the justification of the strike and Washington's next steps amid heightened tensions with Tehran. The senator called the briefing "insulting" and said it was the worst he's heard on a military issue since becoming a senator in 2011. Before he went into the briefing room, Lee said, he wasn't sure if he was going to back a Senate Democrat-backed war powers resolution led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), but the meeting convinced him to throw his weight behind it. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) will reportedly join Lee in backing the measure, as well.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The senator, though, said he didn't want to comment on any individuals he grew frustrated with during the meeting until he speaks directly with President Trump. But, ultimately, he said he went in with a "lot of questions," and exited without any answers.
-
Political cartoons for January 31Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include congressional spin, Obamacare subsidies, and more
-
Syria’s Kurds: abandoned by their US allyTalking Point Ahmed al-Sharaa’s lightning offensive against Syrian Kurdistan belies his promise to respect the country’s ethnic minorities
-
The ‘mad king’: has Trump finally lost it?Talking Point Rambling speeches, wind turbine obsession, and an ‘unhinged’ letter to Norway’s prime minister have caused concern whether the rest of his term is ‘sustainable’
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
