Kamala Harris calls Donald Trump’s Iran strikes ‘recklessness dressed as resolve’, dragging U.S. into war

Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday condemned President Donald Trump’s decision to launch large-scale military strikes on Iran, calling the operation a “dangerous and unnecessary gamble” and urging Congress to intervene before the United States is drawn deeper into what critics are describing as a war of choice.

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“Donald Trump is dragging the United States into a war the American people do not want,” Harris said in a Saturday afternoon statement to The Advocate. It came hours after Trump announced at 2:30 a.m. on Truth Social that the United States had begun what he called “major combat operations in Iran.”

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In his eight-minute video address, Trump described a “massive and ongoing operation” designed to eliminate what he characterized as imminent threats from the Iranian regime. He vowed that Tehran “will never have a nuclear weapon,” acknowledged that “American heroes may be lost,” and urged Iranians to “take over your government” once U.S. operations conclude.

“Let me be clear: I am opposed to a regime-change war in Iran, and our troops are being put in harm’s way for the sake of Trump’s war of choice,” Harris wrote.

Harris argued that such rhetoric dramatically escalates the stakes.

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“This is a dangerous and unnecessary gamble with American lives that also jeopardizes stability in the region and our standing in the world,” she said. “What we are witnessing is not strength. It is recklessness dressed up as resolve.”

Her statement echoed a growing number of Democratic lawmakers and veterans who have questioned both the legality and the strategic coherence of the operation, reportedly dubbed Operation Epic Fury.

California U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, a gay Democrat and ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, tied the escalation abroad to economic pressures at home and called for immediate congressional action.

“The American people deserve lower prices and affordable healthcare, not another war in the Middle East,” Garcia wrote on X. “We can support the people of Iran & their self-determination without this dangerous action that is already costing innocent lives.”

“End this war. We need a War Powers Vote now.”

The administration has defended the strikes as necessary to eliminate imminent threats and prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. But critics note that the White House previously claimed decisive success in an earlier campaign. In June 2025, after a coordinated U.S. operation known as Operation Midnight Hammer targeted Iranian nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, the administration declared that Iran’s nuclear program had been “obliterated,” dismissing suggestions otherwise as “fake news.”

That apparent contradiction has fueled skepticism about the current justification for renewed military action.

“During the campaign, Donald Trump promised to end wars rather than start them. It was a lie,” she said. “Then last year, he said ‘we obliterated’ Iran’s nuclear program. That, too, was a lie.”

Harris insisted military escalation is not the answer.

“I know the threat that Iran poses, and they must never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon, but this is not the way to dismantle that threat,” she said.

Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, warned that the strikes reportedly extended beyond nuclear or missile infrastructure to include “a broad set of targets, including senior Iranian leadership,” calling the move a “deeply consequential decision” that risks pulling the United States into another prolonged Middle East conflict.

“Under the Constitution of the United States, the President must receive authorization from Congress to enter a war,” Harris said. “But even if he had, that does not change the fact this action is unwise, unjustified, and not supported by the American people.”

She also addressed the human cost of the escalation, noting Trump’s own acknowledgment that U.S. casualties are possible.

“And let us all be clear-eyed about what comes next,” Harris said. “The President has already said this conflict may produce American casualties. Doug and I will be praying for all of our brave servicemen and women, who we know are undertaking dangerous missions with exceptional skill, discipline, and precision.”

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, a Navy Reserve veteran who deployed to Afghanistan in 2014, called the strikes a “war of choice” undertaken without congressional authorization and without a plan for what comes next.

“Our troops deserve a Commander-in-Chief who approaches decisions on matters of war and peace with the same steadiness and discipline our troops show every day,” Harris said.

“There can be no equivocation in our opposition to Donald Trump’s war of choice,” Harris said. “Congress must use all available power to prevent him from further committing us to this conflict. Our troops, our allies, and the American people deserve nothing less.”