Republican backing for use of force against Iran starts to crack

Republican support for Donald Trump’s use of force against Iran has fractured over an ‘insulting’ briefing for senators.

‘Probably the worst briefing I’ve seen’: Mike Lee. Picture: AP

Republican support for Donald Trump’s use of force against Iran has fractured over an “insulting and demeaning” briefing for senators that failed to explain the imminent threat posed by Qassem Soleimani.

Two GOP senators indicated they would join Democrats to curb the President's ability to strike Iran without informing congress after a vote in the House of Representatives passed on ­Friday with the support of three Republicans.

Mr Trump defended the briefing, saying the intelligence on the imminent threat was too sensitive to share with congress. He added that he should not be curtailed under the War Powers Act of 1973 because of the need to take “split second” decisions.

The row over the President’s right to wage war began after he failed to inform congressional leaders about the killing a week ago. Mr Trump insisted that a tweet about it on Monday served as legal notification. A briefing given to all members of congress behind closed doors was welcomed by most of Mr Trump’s supporters but Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah, said it was “probably the worst briefing I’ve seen, at least on a military issue” in nine years in the Senate.

Senator Lee was furious that one of the briefers warned that congress would “embolden” Iran if they debated Mr Trump’s war powers. “I find this insulting and demeaning to the office that each of the 100 senators in this building happens to hold. I find it insulting and demeaning to the constitution of the United States,” he said.

Rand Paul, a fellow Republican, from Kentucky, said he found the briefing “less than ­satisfying” and criticised as ­“absurd” and an “insult” the use of the same legal justification used in 2002 to go to war against Iraq as the basis for the strike against Soleimani.

The briefings were led by Defence Secretary Mark Esper and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, CIA director Gina Haspel and Mark Milley, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. Whereas White House officials sought to play down the intent of Iran’s ­attack on two US bases on Wednesday, General Milley departed from the script by saying he thought their intention was to kill Americans.

Marco Rubio, a Republican from Florida, tweeted the briefing was “compelling” and “answered every important question”.

The Senate debate is likely to take place next week, with at least four Republicans needed to overturn the party’s 53-47 majority in a vote and apply restrictions on the White House.

Vice-President Mike Pence tried to calm the dissent, insisting that some of the “most compelling” intelligence could not be shared because it “could compromise sources and methods”.

Mr Trump claimed numerous senators and congressmen had told him it was “the greatest presentation they have ever had”.

The Times