Lawmaker urges House to oppose resolution, says Iran has been at war with U.S. for 47 years

A lawmaker on the House floor urged colleagues to vote no on an unspecified resolution, saying, "For 47 years, there's been a war involving Iran," and accusing Tehran of repeated attacks on Americans, repression of its own people and efforts to develop nuclear weapons.

The lawmaker outlined a series of incidents he said demonstrate Iranian hostility toward the United States: the 1979 hostage crisis, a 1983 attack he said killed "241 Americans, including 220 Marines," the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing he said killed 19 Americans, and what he characterized as Iranian involvement in U.S. military deaths in Iraq from 2003 to 2011, which he said amounted to "over 600" soldiers. He also said that on Oct. 7, 2023, Iran "killed 46 Americans that were living in Israel." Each of those figures was presented by the speaker as evidence in support of his argument.

The lawmaker also accused Iran of domestic repression, saying there are "tears for the school children" but that "we do not hear the cries for the 35,000 Iranians that we know of that they killed in January" and noting that the internet has been shut off in parts of Iran for months. He framed those claims as part of a broader critique that diplomacy has failed, saying "47 years of diplomacy is not enough" and that Iran "uses diplomacy as a weapon to create cover for their nuclear program."

On Iran's nuclear capabilities, the lawmaker said Tehran "has enough material to build a couple" of nuclear weapons and cautioned that while it may not be able to deliver such a weapon to the United States today, developing weapons and missiles is Tehran's "single-minded purpose." He argued Iran sought to build a military infrastructure that would act as a "shield" for that development.

The speaker criticized his colleagues across the aisle, saying they might be "fine learning that they have that nuclear weapon" only after one reached the United States. He expressed support for President Trump and the U.S. military, saying, "Thank God President Trump and the rest of us do not" allow that outcome. He concluded by calling the unnamed resolution "a terrible idea" and urging members to "Vote no on this." He then thanked the presiding officer and reserved his time.

The remarks are a floor statement by a lawmaker and reflect his arguments and assertions; the article attributes contested facts and casualty figures to him where they appear in the record. The resolution he opposed is not named or described in the transcript provided.