Republicans furious as closed-door meeting exposes 'cracks' in support for Trump’s war

Republicans in Congress reported "frustration" this week following a closed-door meeting on President Donald Trump's war in Iran, with CNN reporting that "cracks" have begun to form in the party's support for the conflict, with a clear "red line" emerging, after which their support will supposedly end.

Department of Defense officials were grilled by lawmakers on Wednesday over the current status of the joint military operation with Israel against Iran. Many left the meeting frustrated as the details provided on the purpose of the conflict and its remaining length were left vague, including "a key group of House Republicans [who] are growing increasingly wary" of continuing to back the president. Some GOP lawmakers are already threatening to withhold votes in support of the war, while others warned that their support is quickly wearing thin.

"The reaction to the closed-door briefing is the latest example that cracks are emerging among congressional Republicans over the Iran war as lawmakers are growing increasingly skeptical about spending billions of dollars to prolong the conflict," CNN reported. "Several Republicans have said they will refuse to support any more money for the war without a clear White House strategy."

“There was no plan, no strategy, no endgame shared and they didn’t give any answers," one anonymous official told NBC News about the meeting. "It’s unclear if there isn’t a plan or if there is a plan and they wouldn’t share it with members."

House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers told the outlet that there was “frustration on both sides of the aisle in the last few briefings," adding that lawmakers in attendance "did not receive adequate information about plans for ground troops, the end goal or the expected price tag, among other questions," even as the Pentagon is preparing to submit a major funding request to keep the conflict going.

“They’re moving troops into the CENTCOM and the combatant command, and we want to know more about what options they’re considering. And we aren’t given any details,” Rogers said. “This is one in a series where we feel like the administration needs to be more forthcoming when they send folks over here. That’s good that they finally started sending people over here, but they have to tell us meaningful things while they’re here.”

Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican with a history of vocal support for Trump and his MAGA agenda, was particularly frustrated about the meeting while speaking to CNN.

“I felt like the House Armed Services Committee was misled during that briefing," Mace said. "They didn’t have a lot of answers. Every day this drags on the less support on the Republican side.”

In a post to X following the meeting, Mace added: "Just walked out of a House Armed Services Briefing on Iran. Let me repeat: I will not support troops on the ground in Iran, even more so after this briefing.”

Another anonymous official with knowledge of the briefing noted that deploying troops on the ground in Iran appears to be the "red line" for many lawmakers in their support for the war.

"That’s the time that they’re going to abandon the effort," the official told NBC. "There was concern that that is not being ruled out""