Reaction: Trump Bombs Three Nuclear Sites in Iran

Sunday, 11:23 am — At a Sunday morning briefing at the Pentagon, officials provided more details on Operation Midnight Hammer.

“This was a deliberate and precise strike against three Iranian nuclear facilities, designed to severely degrade Iran’s nuclear weapons infrastructure,” said Dan Caine, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“This was a highly-classified mission, with very few people in Washington knowing the timing or nature of this plan,” he added.

Reactions from lawmakers were mixed. Some questioned whether the President acted within his authority.

Constitutionally, Congress has the power to declare war, while the President commands the military. And under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, the President must notify Congress of military action within 48 hours.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth maintained that the Trump Administration did so.

“They were notified after the planes were safely out. But we complied with the notification requirements of the War Powers Act,” said Hegseth.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) and Ro Khanna (D-California) filed a measure last week to block the Trump Administration from just such an attack.

It would direct the President to terminate the use of the military “from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran or any part of its government or military, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or specific authorization for use of military force against Iran.”

Reactions from members of Congress were predictably mixed. Some condemned the strikes and called to pass the War Powers Resolution. Others praised the bombings.

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Here’s how Wisconsin Congressmembers are reacting

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Saturday, 10:14pm — The United States has directly entered Israel’s war with Iran.

President Donald Trump confirmed Saturday evening that American warplanes had bombed Iranian nuclear development facilities in three cities.

In a statement on social media, Trump said a “full payload” of bombs was dropped on Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan, the sites of uranium enrichment and research facilities.

The attack was carried out with “bunker buster” bombs, which are capable of reaching sites that are deep underground. A U.S. submarine also launched land attack cruise missiles on Isfahan.

“Our objective was the destruction of Iran’s nuclear capacity, and we stopped the nuclear threat… Tonight, I can report to the world that the strikes were a spectacular success,” the President said in a brief address to the nation that lasted less than four minutes.

In that address, Trump also called Iran “the bully of the Middle East,” and signaled the potential for future U.S. attacks.

Trump had said on Thursday that he’d “decide in the next two weeks” on U.S. action in the Israel-Iran conflict. The decision came just three days later.

Civic Media carried a special report on Saturday evening, anchored by Todd Allbaugh and joined by Stephen Zunes, a professor of politics and international studies at the University of San Francisco. He serves as founding director of the school’s Middle Eastern Studies Program, and is widely-regarded as one of the country’s leading scholars on U.S. Middle East policy.

“Since Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal, they’ve not been limited in terms of reprocessing, so they have developed isotopes to a point where they could go in that direction within a couple years,” said Zunes.

“But the idea that this was some kind of imminent threat that required military action at this time is nonsense. Not just because they could simply go back to the Iran Nuclear Deal, but even without that, they’re some time away from that.”

“This is a dangerous escalation in a region already on the edge – and a direct threat to international peace and security,” wrote António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Reactions from were swift as the world learned of the attack.

“Congress must immediately pass Rep. Thomas Massie’s War Powers Resolution to block Trump from dragging the US into an unconstitutional war in the Middle East,” wrote U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin.

“President Trump attacked another country unprovoked and without seeking authorization from Congress as required by our Constitution, ignoring his own intelligence advisors, putting American lives in jeopardy and choosing to escalate in a region already on edge,” wrote Rep. Gwen Moore, Democrat from Wisconsin.

Other members of Congress called for impeachment. Still others endorsed the measure.

U.S. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, a Wisconsin Republican, called the strikes “strong, decisive action fully within President Trump’s constitutional authority as Commander in Chief.”

“By targeting Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan, the Administration has significantly degraded Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and disrupted a looming threat to global security,” he wrote.

This is a developing story. Stay tuned to Civic Media for continuing coverage.