Seth Meyers implores Congress to stop 'deranged' Trump from unilaterally waging war
President Trump brought the United States to the "brink of a disastrous war with Iran," Seth Meyers said on Wednesday's Late Night, and now it's up to Congress to make sure he doesn't trigger another unnecessary conflict.
Despite what Trump and his allies are trying to say, the crisis between the U.S. and Iran "was completely Trump's doing," Meyers said. In response to Trump authorizing an airstrike that killed Iranian Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, Iran on Tuesday launched missiles at Iraqi air bases housing U.S. troops. As Americans watched footage of the missiles streaking through the sky, waiting to see how Trump would react, "you think, 'God, I hope we have smart and steady leadership,'" Meyers said. "Then you say, 'Oh no.'"
On Wednesday, Trump gave an "incoherent" speech claiming "credit for ending a crisis he started." He made threats, then offered peace, all while making sure to absurdly and falsely blame former President Barack Obama for the current tense state of affairs. Presidents of both parties have been accumulating unconstitutional war powers, Meyers said, but Trump sees himself as being above the law, and that's why now is the time for lawmakers to step up.
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Congress has to stop Trump from unilaterally waging a war or triggering another conflict like this again, and can "pass a war powers resolution, block war funding, and repeal both Bush-era authorizations for the use of military force," Meyers said. "They can even keep Trump distracted by tying a chicken nugget to a Roomba and letting it loose in the White House." Watch the video below. Catherine Garcia
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Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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