Ro Khanna: Congress Must Take Back Its War Powers
Rep. Ro Khanna (D–Calif.) discusses the War Powers Resolution he co-sponsored with Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.), the Israel-Iran conflict, and why the antiestablishment left and right must work together.
Who's allowed to launch an attack on another country? Just asking questions.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D–Calif.) joined Reason's Just Asking Questions podcast to discuss the War Powers Resolution he's co-sponsored with Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.), which would require President Donald Trump to seek congressional approval before continuing to drop bombs in Iran. He also discussed Trump's remarks that the governments of Israel and Iran "don't know what the fuck they are doing" after they ignored his call for a ceasefire, whether or not the administration likely destroyed Iran's nuclear program, and why he's eager to work with the antiestablishment right to rein in war powers and get corrupt money out of Congress.
Chapters:
00:00—Podcast theme
00:28—Introducing the War Powers Resolution and Iran airstrikes
05:19—Trump's war instincts and the MAGA anti-war base
10:10—The diplomatic alternative to military action on Iran
15:48—Israel-Iran ceasefire and Trump's response
19:30—Trump's influence over Netanyahu and Middle East peace prospects
23:05—The bipartisan push to rein in executive war powers
27:33—The Democratic Party's anti-war identity crisis
30:29—Building left-right anti-establishment alliances
34:11—Rebuilding trust in government and American purpose
39:49—Reform priorities: money in politics and war powers
