As the war in Iran approaches the three-week mark with no end in sight, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are at odds over one key matter: How will this end?
For many lawmakers — supporters and skeptics alike — the answer remains elusive. Much of the uncertainty stems from Iran's ability to dictate the pace and scope of the conflict, as well as the administration's failure to articulate a clear endgame.
"The problem is, they have no endgame at all," said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "So we now have an open-ended conflict where Iran's goal is to drag this out and make it as painful as possible for America and our partners."
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., another Foreign Relations member, said he's sat in several classified briefings on the war and has not received a clear answer on how this conflict concludes. But he still had an answer to how it ends: "badly."
And it's not just Democrats who have raised these concerns. The uncertainty on Capitol Hill mirrors the shifting signals from the White House.
This is a preview of Mychael Schnell's latest article. Read the full article here.
