Grilled by Democrats during a House hearing on the Iran war, the head of US Central Command said Tuesday that it was inappropriate to question how many more Americans would be asked to die. Rep. Seth Moulton, a Marine veteran and Massachusetts Democrat running for Senate, had pressed Adm. Brad Cooper to explain how the US might win a war it appears to be "losing," with no nuclear deal and the Strait of Hormuz still blocked, per the Washington Post. "I would like to know how many more Americans we have to ask to die for this mistake. Do you know?" he asked, per Mediaite, prompting Cooper to respond that "it's an entirely inappropriate statement."
A recent poll shows 61% of Americans agree with Moulton that the war was, in fact, a mistake. Cooper, who appeared visibly angry at times, repeatedly stressed that he offers military options while the Trump administration sets policy. He added that the US has "achieved all of our military objectives," with major setbacks to Iran's military and nuclear ambitions. Democrats pressed Cooper and Pentagon official Daniel Zimmerman about Iran's reportedly still-functioning missile sites and about whether hostilities have truly ended, as intermittent exchanges of fire have continued amid a fragile ceasefire. As the hearing unfolded, President Trump again said he had come within "an hour" of ordering new strikes.
Moulton later doubled down, saying commanders should be asking the kinds of questions Cooper tried to dodge "before entering any war." "If Admiral Cooper is unwilling to ask these questions himself, or is uncomfortable answering them, then he's not doing his job," he said, per the Post. During the hearing, Rep. John Garamendi said he felt "very, very sorry" for Cooper and Zimmerman. "You just cannot answer a question correctly and directly, but you're doing the best you can," said the Democrat. He went on to accuse Trump's Defense Department of disregarding Congress and the Constitution, per Fox News.
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