President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the Iran war would restart if Tehran or its proxies killed more American troops.
Trump was asked about the tenuous ceasefire between the United States and Iran during an Oval Office event promoting “clean, beautiful coal” as an energy source. Specifically, Trump was asked if Iranian attacks on U.S. troops would be a “red line.”
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“It would be a good reason [to resume strikes on Iran], I’d be honest with you,” Trump said. “If they killed U.S. troops, I think, I would do that very quickly.”
Since the start of the conflict, 13 American service members have been killed. Most of those were in the early days of the war as Iran launched retaliatory strikes against U.S. military bases in the Middle East.
Trump’s comments came one day after four House Republicans voted with nearly every single Democrat to force the White House to end hostilities with Iran. The Senate passed a similar measure a few weeks back.
TRUMP SUFFERS DEFEAT AS FOUR HOUSE REPUBLICANS BACK REMOVING US FROM HOSTILITIES WITH IRAN
The 1973 War Powers Resolution limits a president’s unilateral military action to 60 days before having to seek authorization from Congress. The law does allow the president to grant himself a one-time 30-day extension, subject to limitations on offensive operations.
The White House has argued that the war, which started on Feb. 28, has yet to reach the threshold because of a shaky ceasefire in place with Iran.
