Special to IFN
WASHINGTON, D.C.— Congressman Pat Harrigan released a statement on Thursday after voting against a War Powers Resolution directing President Trump to remove U.S. Armed Forces from hostilities against Iran.
“I’m voting against this resolution because forcing a withdrawal without a defined strategy, without serious congressional deliberation, and without a clear understanding of the consequences is not responsible leadership,” said Harrigan, a Republican who represents North Carolina’s 10th Congressional District.
“But let me be clear about what this vote is not. It is not a blank check, and it is not an endorsement of continued action without congressional involvement.”
A former Green Beret who attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, Harrigan called Iran “a terrorist regime that has spent decades funding proxy groups, destabilizing the Middle East, targeting Americans, and threatening our allies.”
President Trump, he said, was right to respond with strength and re-establish deterrence.
“But strength without clarity can become drift, and I have seen firsthand what happens when conflicts lose defined objectives and accountability,” Harrigan said. “War is not theoretical to me. I fought in one where missions expanded, timelines disappeared, and American servicemembers carried the physical and psychological burdens of political decisions made far from the battlefield, and I will not allow that to happen again to the next generation.”
During the past month, Harrigan has shared his concerns with administration officials. In these discussions, the congressman said, he has been “pressing for a clear status of negotiations, stronger congressional engagement, and assurances that America will not slide into another endless conflict.”
“My frustration is not with decisive action against a hostile regime. My frustration is with the lack of timely consultation and clarity from the administration about the long-term path forward. Congress and the American people deserve a clear vision of the way ahead, and the administration’s plan of turning tactical success into strategic victory,” Harrigan said. America must remain strong. Our enemies must fear us. But the American people and the men and women we send into harm’s way deserve seriousness, accountability, and a clearly defined path forward. That is what I will work to secure.”