71% of Americans Want Congress to End the Iran War, but Democratic Leaders Won’t Commit to a Funding Fight
Seven in 10 Americans want the incoming Democratic Congress to pass a law ending the war with Iran, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found, as some Democrats push to use next month’s funding deadline to cut off money for the fight.
The four-day poll, completed Nov. 9, found 71% support for legislation ending the war, including 93% of Democrats and 51% of Republicans. It surveyed 1,705 adults online and has a margin of error of about 2 percentage points.
The survey also found 62% would back repealing Trump’s tariffs, and nine in 10 want the new Congress to focus on the cost of living in its first 100 days. Trump’s approval stood at 32%.
Neither party came out looking good. Democrats were viewed favorably by 45% and unfavorably by 51%, while Republicans were at 35% favorable and 60% unfavorable. And 42% said impeaching Trump would be bad for the country, versus 33% who said it would be good.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), who has floated challenging Chuck Schumer for leader, said Tuesday that the fastest way to end the war is “to stop funding it,” Common Dreams reported. Government funding runs out Dec. 11.
“If President Trump wants to tell the country that he’ll shut down the entire government, all federal agencies, in order to keep his illegal war going, that’s his decision,” Van Hollen said in a video. “Let’s end this war and end it now: not a penny more.”
He and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) are pushing language modeled on a 1973 law that cut off funds for the war in Southeast Asia, The Washington Sun reported. “The idea would be to say no funds may be expended to conduct the war in Iran,” Van Hollen said.
Party leaders have not signed on. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries declined Monday to say whether he would hold up a spending bill. “We’re going to end the war in Iran one way or the other,” he said.
Jeffries said appropriations were in the hands of Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), the top Democrats on the spending committees, Common Dreams reported.
Some Democrats fear a December shutdown would be a tactical mistake. One aide warned a long standoff could eat up the opening weeks of the new majority, according to The Washington Sun.
Republicans hold 53 Senate seats until January, so they would need at least seven Democratic votes to break a filibuster on a funding bill.
The administration is not backing down. “I stand behind every one of these operations. I was proud to execute them, and I would do it again tomorrow,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a Pentagon briefing Tuesday, Iran International reported.
Hegseth said 18 Americans have died in Operation Epic Fury and that U.S. forces destroyed more than 80% of Iran’s nuclear industrial base. Trump has defended the war as necessary to keep Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.
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