1. United States
2. Miss.
3. Letter

I am writing in response to today's newsletter that paints Operation Epic Fury as "a week of unrelenting force." I need to ask whether spending billions of our tax dollars and causing the deaths of over 100 schoolchildren will genuinely bring lasting peace to the Middle East. Operation Epic Fury has cost American taxpayers $3.7 billion in just its first 100 hours, with $3.5 billion of that completely unbudgeted. Munitions replacement alone totals $3.1 billion for the first 100 hours, with daily costs increasing by $758.1 million. We fired over 160 Tomahawk cruise missiles at $3.6 million each, struck nearly 2,000 targets, and lost three F-15s in a friendly-fire incident over Kuwait costing $309 million to replace. President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have indicated this conflict could continue for weeks, meaning these costs will multiply exponentially. The unbudgeted costs will require either a supplemental appropriation, inclusion in the FY 2027 reconciliation bill, or diversion of funds from the DOD's $150 billion in the first reconciliation bill. Any of these options means either adding to our national debt or cutting funding from other critical priorities that directly benefit your constituents. The human toll makes these expenditures even more unconscionable. Over 100 schoolchildren have been killed in what your newsletter calls "surgical strikes." These are not statistics but real children with families and futures that have been destroyed. Every child killed creates grieving parents, siblings, and communities who will remember American bombs for generations. We are not eliminating threats but creating a new generation of Iranians who will grow up hating the United States, ensuring decades of future conflict rather than the peace we claim to seek. As a person of faith, I cannot reconcile this violence with the teachings of Jesus, who commanded us to love our neighbors and even our enemies. Christ preached nonviolence and turning the other cheek, not responding to aggression with overwhelming force that kills children. When we drop bombs that kill schoolchildren, we are not following the Prince of Peace but perpetuating the very cycles of hatred and revenge that Christ explicitly rejected. I am asking you to publicly question the strategic rationale for Operation Epic Fury and demand a clear explanation from the administration about how this campaign achieves lasting peace rather than perpetuating cycles of violence. Our constituents deserve accountability for how their tax dollars are spent and transparency about military actions taken in their name, especially when those actions result in the deaths of children.