TRANSCRIPT: Leader Schumer Announces Imminent Vote On War Powers Resolution To Rein In Donald Trump’s Chaotic War Of Choice In Iran

New York, N.Y. – Today, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) held a media availability to discuss the cost of Donald Trump’s War of Choice and announce that next week, Senate Democrats will force a vote on a War Powers Resolution to rein in Trump’s reckless military actions. Below is a transcript of Leader Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Let's take stock after 39 days of bloodshed, billions of dollars. Let's see where we are after 39 days of this war. Trump's war – with a price tag of $44 billion and $4 gas – made us worse off today than we were when he started it. And let's go over this piece by piece. Why are we worse off today than the day he started it?

First, the Strait of Hormuz. It's in worse shape today, with more Iranian domination of it than it was before the war started. Iran has now demonstrated to the whole world that it can use the Strait of Hormuz as leverage against the international community. In terms of what Trump has described of this two-week ceasefire, even when that holds, the Strait is only partially open for two weeks, and it's on a conditional basis. That leverage is not gone. Trump handed to the Iranians leverage over the Strait of Hormuz. So in the short term, we're not in much better shape, and in the long term, we're in much worse shape when it comes to all the oil that has to go out of the Strait.

Second, the Iranian regime. Iran still has an Ayatollah named Khamenei. The Iranian regime is still standing. Not just standing, but now emboldened. And the regime is likely to be even more radical and more dangerous than it was before. So it's worse. Trump's Iran war has strengthened the Iranian regime and made the United States’ position worse.

Gas prices. At home here, American families have paid the price for this war. Gas prices have skyrocketed in just a matter of days. They're not going to change until August. And in general, the world oil markets will be unsettled for years. Years from now, several years from now, Americans in the world will still be paying the price, a higher price for gas prices than before, than when before the war started.

Iran's nuclear ambition, worse. The bottom line is that Iran still has its nuclear stockpile. Its nuclear ambitions are still unchecked, if not accelerated.

And finally, American credibility. The nations of the world are furious at Trump. The Europeans, the Asians, even the Middle Eastern allies. They say, “what the hell is he doing?” And the United States' diplomatic position and credibility in the world is dramatically worse because of this war.

So just in summary, just in summary, this war has made us worse off today than before it started. The war made us worse in terms of control of the Strait of Hormuz. The war made us worse in terms of the strength of the Iranian regime. The war made us worse in terms of high gas prices. The war made us worse because Iran's nuclear ambitions have been unchecked. And the war made us worse because American credibility is down the drain. It's just incredible. This is one of the very worst military and foreign policy actions that the United States has ever taken, ever taken.

And of course, there are other points here. Brave American soldiers have died. Many remain in harm's way. All of this happens when one man, especially a man acting as unhinged as Donald Trump, has unchecked power to wage war. He backs himself into a corner with dangerous, escalating rhetoric. The entire world holds its breath, wondering what's next going to come out of his mouth. And can he ever find a way out? A commander-in-chief who is truly in control would never have gotten into this colossal mess to begin with.

That is exactly why I am announcing that today the Senate will vote next week on the War Powers Resolution. Congress must reassert its authority, especially at this dangerous moment. No president, Democrat or Republican, should take this country to war alone. Not now, not ever. Republicans will once again have the opportunity to join Democrats and end this reckless war of choice. The public must demand that Republicans join with us to approve the War Powers Act.

The War Powers Act will cease hostilities and require the administration to get an AUMF before going to war after the hostilities cease. And the bottom line is this. From day one, this war has never had a satisfactory answer to what is the goal, what do we want to achieve, what is the timetable? How much will it cost in both lives and treasure? He has never had an answer. In fact, his answer varies from day to day to day. It almost looks as he wakes up in the morning, looks at the oil market and the stock market, and determined that day's actions over in Iran. It's erratic, but worse than erratic, it's dangerous.

Let this be a warning. If Trump starts a new war, we will be in worse shape, given his lack of planning and focus. Trump must end the war now. The only viable solution is a lasting diplomatic one. A two-week ceasefire, especially one as fragile as this, is not a strategy. It's not a diplomatic solution. It's not a plan. Trump needs to stop posting on the social media and start doing the hard work of building a lasting peace. Trump chose this war. He owns the consequences and next week Congress will act, has the opportunity to act, to make sure it cannot happen again.

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Reporter: With respect, of course, the administration sounds almost triumphant about the war, insisting that all U.S. objectives have been achieved, with minimal losses. What's your response to that? And I have a follow-up.

Leader Schumer: My response to that is just look at the actual results, not the B.S. that comes out of the administration. Strait of Hormuz, we’re in worse shape. Iranian regime, worse shape. Gas prices, worse shape. Iran's nuclear ambition, we're in worse shape. American credibility, we're in worse shape. This war is a colossal failure. And as I said, Trump should end the war now. The only viable solution is a lasting diplomatic one.

Reporter: As the hours ticked by yesterday, with the potentially catastrophic threat on the table, what, if anything, do you do to counsel the president, to counsel the White House?

Schumer: We publicly and privately told the White House just what we've said here.

Reporter: Did you speak directly to the president?

Schumer: No.

Reporter: Did you try to?

Schumer: We spoke through the administration. The president was not available.

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