Moulton calls for strategy for Syria, says Trump doesn’t care enough to ‘let the victims of Assad find refuge here’
Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton blasted President Donald Trump’s stance on refugees and called for a clear military strategy following the United States assault on a Syrian air base Thursday night.
The Democrat and Iraq War veteran took to Twitter after the launch of Tomahawk missiles against the government base to question how much the president cared for the Syrian people.
So @POTUS cares enough about the Syrian people to launch 50 Tomahawks but not enough to let the victims of Assad find refuge & freedom here.
— Seth Moulton (@sethmoulton) April 7, 2017
Syria is one of the countries included in the president’s revised travel ban—currently tied up in litigation—which would impose a three-month ban on issuing new visas for citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries.
Moulton also issued a joint statement with fellow Iraq War veteran Republican Congressman Steve Russell of Oklahoma early Friday morning.
.@RepRussell and I both served in Iraq. Here is our bipartisan statement on the President’s military action in Syria tonight: pic.twitter.com/xzPfqKcULT
— Seth Moulton (@sethmoulton) April 7, 2017
“War doesn’t get any easier than launching a few Tomahawk missiles,” Moulton wrote on Twitter Friday morning, emphasizing the need for a strategy.
War doesn’t get any easier than launching a few Tomahawk missiles. Everything from here is harder and more complicated. We need a strategy.
— Seth Moulton (@sethmoulton) April 7, 2017
In an interview with CNN Friday morning, Moulton said that, going forward, Congress must debate and approve “whatever plans the president wants to carry out.”
“It’s going to get a lot harder, and he’s going to have a lot of questions to answer,” Moulton said.
Democrat Rep. @sethmoulton on Trump’s airstrikes on Syria: “War doesn’t get an easier than what he did last night” https://t.co/HtVELcNdsR
— CNN This Morning with Kasie Hunt (@CNNThisMorning) April 7, 2017
Moulton’s comments about Syrian refugees echoed sentiments expressed Thursday by his Massachusetts colleague Rep. Joe Kennedy on Twitter.
“A great country would contribute more than just outrage,” Kennedy wrote on Thursday afternoon. “It would offer the terrorized children and families of Syria refuge on its shores.”
Kennedy also said in a statement that “any strategy that ignores the refugees fleeing this unimaginable terror is a half-step at best.”
Assad’s vicious brutality demands a response. But this country doesn’t fight wars without giving the American people a say. More here: pic.twitter.com/ND1XB2lVDA
— Joe Kennedy III (@joekennedy) April 7, 2017
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that Kennedy posted his tweet about Syrian refugees on Thursday night. He did so on Thursday afternoon. We regret the error.
