GOP silence during crisis speaks volumes: NYT

As President Donald Trump swung back and forth between threatening civilizational destruction of Iran and declaring a ceasefire, where have congressional Republicans been?

“The speaker of the House was tweeting about transgender athletes,” reports The New York Times. “The Republican senator who leads oversight of the Pentagon was promoting Trump-branded investment accounts for children. The chairman of the main foreign affairs panel in the House was posting photos of newborn bald eagles.”

“No better sight than America’s mascot hatching, a powerful reminder of the spirit and strength of our great country,” declared U.S. Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), at the images.

The Times noted that Congress, which has been “vested with the power to declare war and regulate trade — remained in recess and largely in the dark.”

Republicans’ “relative silence also helped them avoid wading into what has become a messy intraparty debate over the war, as elements on the right criticize the president for plunging the United States into what could be a prolonged and costly conflict,” the Times added.

The Trump administration, meanwhile, has provided no official briefings to Congress.

U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) “said he supported pursuing diplomacy but emphasized the need for congressional scrutiny of any peace agreement” — and pointed to Vice President JD Vance.

“I look forward to the architects of this proposal, the Vice President and others, coming forward to Congress and explaining how a negotiated deal meets our national security objectives in Iran,” said Graham. In another post, he added, “I prefer diplomacy if it leads to the right outcome regarding the Iranian terrorist regime.”

U.S. Senator Ron Johnson (R-WI) similarly handed off responsibility to the president.

“At this point in time, I’ve got to hope and pray that the commander in chief the American people chose — we put him in charge of this — that he’ll make wise decisions,” Johnson said in an interview.

U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS), who had been posting about Trump-branded investment accounts, defended Trump’s threat to wipe Iran off the map.

“Iran has been the worst actor on the world stage when it comes to state-sponsored terrorism that the world has ever seen,” Wicker said. “I am glad that they are about to be off the scene.”