Act Now to Stop Another Trump War, No Strikes on Cuba

I am blown away to see the White House laying the groundwork to send us into yet another war, this time on Cuba. Please take a lesson from their Iran campaign and stop Trump from engaging in this new conflict before he starts it. Regardless of what this administration claims, the Iran War is still ongoing. The Pentagon estimates we have spent $29 billion and counting in taxpayer money on this operation and the impact on our economy has been devastating. Folks were already struggling to get by, and now we’re experiencing skyrocketing fuel prices while the government cuts food and health care assistance, claiming they can’t afford them. 13 U.S. soldiers are dead, along with thousands of innocent Iranians. And Tehran has arguably improved its strategic position since the first strikes! Now we’re going to be asked to spend even more of our money, slash more services that actually help us, and put even more of our troops at risk. As if one war of choice wasn’t enough. And for what? No one in our government has offered any particular explanation as to why they have chosen to ramp up hostilities. Cuba poses no serious security threat, immediate or otherwise, to the United States of America. There certainly isn’t any public demand for it. We’ve made it extremely clear that we’re done with the endless wars. We want our leaders focused on fixing problems here at home instead of blowing up other people’s houses. Starving and attacking Cuba does not serve the interest of regular Americans. And while no one denies the government of Cuba is a brutal dictatorship that has brought suffering to its people, nothing about the Trump strategy suggests they’re looking out for ordinary folks on the island, either. Our blockade has led to a humanitarian crisis, with schools closed, hospitals restricted and essential medicines running out. Furthermore, as we saw in Venezuela and Iran, this administration has redefined regime change to include leaving a different authoritarian from the same system in charge. Freedom and self-determination for the Cuban people is not their priority. So whose interests would be served? Megadonors and corporate interests who see the opportunity for more profits in Cuba and in the war itself, and a president desperate to shape his image in the history books and impose his will on the world. Donald Trump is treating our young men and women like pieces in a game of Risk, to be sacrificed if it will help him score a few points. One thing this Congress must learn from the last few months is that it is far harder to end a war than to start one. You have not been able to force this administration to lay out its exit plan, its strategy or even its objectives in the Iran War. You have not been able to restrain its conduct. The results speak for themselves. If you do not step in and block them from launching new strikes on Cuba, you are tacitly giving rein to this White House to take whatever foolish, self-destructive and bloody steps it wants. Do not wait until after the first shots to try to do your job. Pass a war powers resolution blocking further escalation against Cuba and alleviating our stranglehold on them now, and make it publicly clear you will not vote to authorize or fund another Trump war.