Rep. Dan Goldman speaks to reporters about the war in the Middle East. He was at Borough of Manhattan Community College for a ceremony to celebrate the awarding of federal funds for a program that helps formerly incarcerated students. Photo: Carl Glassman/Tribeca Trib
As war in the Middle East widened and deaths continued to mount, Rep. Dan Goldman blasted President Trump on Monday, calling the attack on Iran unconstitutional and “with seemingly no indication that there was an imminent threat and with no plan for the day after.”
Speaking to reporters following an event at Borough of Manhattan Community College in Tribeca, Goldman, whose 10th District includes Lower Manhattan, said the first thing Congress needs do is bring the War Powers Resolution to the House floor for a vote, “and make sure that we reassert Congress’s authority under the Constitution to declare war.” The Resolution is a federal law that prevents the president from sending U.S. armed forces into conflicts abroad without Congressional consent.
“This time they better not lie like George W. Bush did [before the invasion of Iraq] but to explain the basis for their actions, the reason why they took unilateral action, and then also very importantly to have a plan for the aftermath,” he said.
Goldman acknowledged the “horrific” Iranian regime that recently has killed as many as 30,000 of its own people, “but that does not mean that you go in at any point with a military attack.”
It is “not coincidental,” he added, that Trump’s decision to wage war comes at a time when his poll numbers are sinking and domestic pressures are mounting, from the economy to the Supreme Court decision on tariffs to calls for the release of more Epstein files. Referring to an interview Trump gave the day before, “he seems to change his mind as to what the plan should be within a five-minute conversation. That’s incredibly scary because we could be getting into a regional war or even a larger conflict if China or Russia starts getting involved."
Goldman was at BMCC for a ceremony to announce a $357,000 Department of Justice grant in support of the college’s Project Impact Program, which is aimed at supporting formerly incarcerated students. He had requested and secured funding for the project as part of a package of bills to fund the federal government.