Dem rep: Trump ‘regards war as a way to solve political problems’

Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.) on Monday said President Trump regards war as a way to solve political problems, saying that is a “scary thought.”

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“We need to be sensitive to the fact that this president, who doesn’t have a very sophisticated sense of international relations, regards a war as a way to solve political problems and that’s a scary thought,” Himes, who serves on the House Intelligence Committee, said on CNN’s “New Day.” 

Himes was responding to Trump’s late-night tweet threatening Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, in which the U.S. president warned Rouhani he should “NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.” 

To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018

Himes said it is an “overstatement” to say the U.S. is at the brink of war with Iran, but he pointed out that Trump has mentioned military action with Tehran before.

During former President Obama’s presidency, Trump tweeted several times predicting that Obama would go to war with Iran.

“He criticized several times Barack Obama and said, ‘You just wait, he’s going to start a war with Iran if it feels like he’s on the political ropes,’ ” Himes said. “So that’s in his head — that’s what worries me.” 

“I think it’s an overstatement to say we’re at the brink of war,” says Rep. @JAHimes in response to President Trump tweeting an explosive threat to Iran. “I think that’s probably not true.” https://t.co/wUA3om4Wll pic.twitter.com/JdiJ5uwJax

— New Day (@NewDay) July 23, 2018

Himes added that Americans are forgetting the “horrors of the Iraq war.” 

“I still think even though most Americans are starting to forget the horrors of the Iraq War … there is an ability to say, ‘Hey, do we really want to go back to the brink? Do we really want to contemplate another Middle Eastern war?’ ” Himes said, adding it could become an issue during the November elections. 

“If Iraq was tough, wait till you try Iran,” he said. “Iran is a much more powerful country than Iraq ever was.” 

The Trump administration in May left the Iran nuclear pact, which lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for the reduction of Iran’s nuclear power. The U.S.’s departure from the deal leaves Iran vulnerable to reinstated sanctions, which has escalated tensions between the two countries.

Rouhani on Sunday warned that war with Iran would be the “mother of all wars,” prompting Trump’s explosive tweets.