1. United States
2. N.Y.
3. Letter

I am writing to demand that Congress refuse to authorize or appropriate a single additional dollar for the ongoing war in Iran. This conflict was launched without congressional authorization, without a clear legal justification, and without the support of the American public. It is an illegal war of choice that risks dragging the United States into an expanding open-ended regional conflict. And yet there are reports that some Democratic lawmakers are still considering approving additional funding to support this war. That would be a profound mistake. It is unacceptable. If Congress cannot stop the war directly, then it must use the one power the Constitution gives it that no president can bypass: the power of the purse. For decades, Congress has steadily surrendered its constitutional authority over war to the executive branch. Presidents of both parties have pushed the boundaries of unilateral military action, and Congress has too often allowed it to happen. But the situation we face today has crossed into an extreme that can no longer be ignored. This administration has effectively decided that it can bypass Congress whenever it chooses—on matters of war, national security, and international conflict. And far too often, Congress has allowed that to happen. At this point, Congress has one remaining tool that cannot be ignored: refusing to fund the war. No new funding. No supplemental appropriations. No blank checks for an administration that has already demonstrated contempt for congressional authority. If Congress continues to fund a war it never authorized, then it is complicit in allowing the executive branch to permanently seize the power to wage war without democratic accountability. Democrats in Congress must take a stand. Do not allow any additional funding for this war. Block supplemental war appropriations. Use your leverage to force an end to this conflict. If necessary, block unrelated legislative business until the administration provides a lawful justification for this war and a clear plan to end it. The American people do not want this war. They do not want their tax dollars spent on another open-ended military conflict in the Middle East while urgent needs at home go unmet. Congress must finally defend its constitutional role. No more money for this war!