U.S. Combat Veterans Tear Into Trump’s ‘Unnecessary’ War ‘Lies’

Angry veterans have launched a scathing attack on President Donald Trump’s war in Iran, labeling it “pointless” and—in their own words—founded on “lies.”

The President had allied himself with Israel to launch this conflict on February 28. Since then, thousands of people have lost their lives—including at least 13 American soldiers—and a worsening energy crisis has erupted. This conflict echoes the Iraq War, which began on March 20, 2003.

The Strait of Hormuz—a vital shipping lane—remains closed, while other nations in the region find themselves being dragged into the vortex of this conflict. Worse still, the Trump administration appears to be running out of ideas, while the prospects of a swift withdrawal—despite earlier promises—seem increasingly slim.

In this regard, Jason Dozier—an Atlanta City Council member and veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan—told The Daily Beast: “The absence of a clear strategy or vision regarding the desired end-state serves only to undermine U.S. credibility on the international stage. As an Iraq War veteran, I witnessed firsthand the heavy toll exacted by such conflicts, and I had hoped that those lessons would serve as a compass to guide future decisions. Unfortunately, that does not appear to be the case.”

For his part, John Kamin—who served in Iraq—spoke about his feelings and emotions during this period of conflict.

Kamin told The Daily Beast: “One of the obsessions that haunted me in Iraq—I was twenty-one at the time, and it was such an atrocious thought that I could only tolerate it in my mind for brief moments—was imagining a future where the next generation would be forced to fight the exact same battles we did. As we age and our bodies grow weaker, our sons will take our place on the battlefield. It was a concept I simply could not fathom… because it was incredibly difficult to imagine that our blood and our sacrifices would not be enough to endow America with the wisdom necessary to spare future generations the horrors of war. This is a reality that leaves us all bruised.”

According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Defense, the Iraq War claimed the lives of 4,492 American soldiers and left another 32,292 wounded. Furthermore, the estimated number of Iraqi civilians who lost their lives stands at approximately 200,000.

In a related context, Naveed Shah—political director of the organization “Common Defense” and a U.S. Army veteran who served during Operation Iraqi Freedom—stated that he saw right through the façade maintained by Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and General Dan Kaine: the principal architects of this military operation. “I was deployed to Iraq in 2009.

I watched this country sell us a war built on lies, and I watched my fellow soldiers pay the price,” he told The Beast. He added that Trump, Hegseth, and Keene “employ the same tactic: creating a sense of urgency, failing to define a clear objective, lacking an exit strategy, and endangering the members of our armed forces.”

Referring to the chaotic and interminable war in Iraq, Shah added: “History repeats itself because power-hungry leaders never learn from their mistakes, while ordinary people pay the price. Veterans across the country clearly see what is happening, and we will not remain silent while a new generation is saddled with a war that neither politicians nor their children will ever have to fight.”

Republican Representative Eli Crane—who represents Arizona—is a veteran of the Navy SEALs, an elite unit; he left college to enlist in the military barely a week after the attacks of September 11, 2001. Crane was one of the very first critics of this war within the Republican Party—a conflict that caused a deep rift between “America First” Republicans and those loyal to the “MAGA” movement.

Earlier this month, he stated: “As someone who has lost many friends who never returned home, and who knows many families of fallen soldiers (known as ‘Gold Star families’), I was—during the week preceding the attack—among the voices calling for caution and emphasizing the absolute necessity of avoiding involvement in another long and grueling war in the Middle East.”

Nevertheless, Crane voted against a war powers resolution that would have halted attacks against Iran unless Trump obtained congressional approval. This move came just one day after the Senate blocked a similar war powers resolution.

The initiative was spearheaded by two of Trump’s most vocal critics: Republican Representative Thomas Massie (of Kentucky) and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna (of California). Massie predicted that support for the conflict led by Trump would quickly erode, stating: “No war is ever more popular than on the day it begins; and I believe that enthusiasm for this war will eventually fizzle out.”

Indeed, support levels have plummeted to an all-time low outside of Trump’s core base of voters (known as “MAGA”). These loyalists, however, remain unwavering in their adherence to the President’s insistence that this conflict would be “short-lived”—according to a recent poll conducted by Politico. Trump had predicted a withdrawal from the conflict within a maximum of five weeks; yet, three weeks later, no end to the conflict is in sight.

Crane’s remarks came one day after an Iranian attack targeted Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, resulting in the death of 26-year-old U.S. Sergeant Benjamin Pennington. Since then, six additional U.S. soldiers have been killed, bringing the total death toll to 13. Conversely, Iranian authorities claim that nearly 1,500 people—mostly civilians—have been killed during the operation, which they dubbed “Operation Epic Fury.”

Chris Purdy is the CEO and founder of The Chamberlain Network, a veteran-led non-profit organization dedicated to protecting democracy. Chris served for eight years in the Army National Guard, completing a deployment to Iraq in 2011.

In a statement to The Daily Beast, Chris asserted that Trump had dragged the country into a new war in the Middle East, based on “specious” pretexts.

Purdy added: “The Iraq War was presented to the American public as a necessity to prevent Saddam from using nuclear weapons, despite a total lack of evidence that he possessed any. Today, 23 years later, the United States finds itself once again dragged into a war revolving around imaginary nuclear weapons in Iran.”

The Iraq War broke out in the spring of 2003, following an invasion led by a U.S.-led international coalition aimed at ousting Saddam Hussein. Officials justified the conflict by claiming that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and was actively seeking to acquire nuclear capabilities.

For his part, Mr. Trump has consistently justified the conflict he is currently waging by claiming that Iran is on the verge of producing nuclear weapons and long-range ballistic missiles. Speaking to MSNBC on Friday morning, Mr. Trump stated: “Ultimately, they cannot possess a nuclear weapon.”

However, experts—and even his own administration—have contradicted the President on this point. In an assessment released in May of last year—just one month before Mr. Trump launched his first strikes against Iranian nuclear sites—the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) indicated that it would, in reality, take Iran nearly a decade to be capable of producing such weapons.

Mr. Purdy continued: “The American people have had enough of endless wars, as well as the politicians who constantly drag us into them.” »

Dr. Maggie Seymour enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 2007, following the death of her cousin—also a Marine—in Iraq. She participated in military deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, and, later, Kuwait, where she served as an intelligence officer.

She is deeply concerned about the long-term repercussions of the war Mr. Trump is waging. Speaking to The Beast, she stated: “This war is not only unnecessary, but there is a strong likelihood that it will cause more harm than good.”

She added that politicians have an unfortunate habit of “weaponizing” the military, veterans, and their families, reducing them to mere “political props.”

She stated: “This represents a dangerous and escalatory extension of this situation. It is a blatant disregard for the lives and livelihoods of members of our military community—not to mention the lives of thousands of people across the Middle East. Our military exists to protect the people of our country and to uphold the Constitution that governs us, not to satisfy the whims of politicians and political appointees.”

In a similar vein, White House spokesperson Davis Engel told Politico on Friday that Trump “campaigned proudly on his promise to deny the Iranian regime the ability to develop a nuclear weapon—which is precisely what this noble operation aims to accomplish.”

However, Engel failed to mention that Trump had also promised to “purge the warmongers” from the government and had positioned himself as the candidate of “peace.”

For her part, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly asserted that the military action had been meticulously planned and was not a haphazard act. She told the Daily Beast: “Thanks to a detailed planning process, the entire administration was—and remains—fully prepared to address any potential move the Iranian terrorist regime might undertake.”

She added that Trump was fully aware that Iran would retaliate against his military action by disrupting the global energy supply. She asserted: “President Trump was absolutely certain that Iran would attempt to impede freedom of navigation and the free flow of energy; he has already taken steps to destroy more than 40 vessels intended for mine-laying operations.”