The joint U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran are fracturing the Republican Party, with a small — but vocal — group of GOP figures, including prominent MAGA firebrands, breaking from the administration and blasting the operation.
“Absolutely disgusting and evil,” right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson, a friend of Vice President JD Vance who’s been spotted at the White House in recent weeks, told ABC News correspondent Jonathan Karl of the strikes.
Carlson is among the few influential conservatives who quickly and loudly voiced their objections to the “major combat operations” that President Donald Trump announced in a video posted to social media at 2:30 a.m., highlighting a fissure in the GOP that has been percolating for years.
Trump said the effort was meant to “defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime.” Explosions rang out in Iran, and Tehran has since launched ballistic missiles at Israel and retaliatory offensives on countries with U.S. military bases.
For some Republicans, it comes down to the Constitution: Article I grants Congress the power to declare war, and some GOP lawmakers joined Democrats in criticizing the administration for not receiving authorization from Congress before launching the strikes.
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., wrote on X that he has “sympathy for the plight of the Iranian people and all subjected people around the globe,” but said he disapproves of the action because it was taken without approval from Congress.
“As with all war, my first and purest instinct is wish Americans soldiers safety and success in their mission,” Paul wrote. “But my oath of office is to the Constitution, so with studied care, I must oppose another Presidential war.”
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., sounded a similar note, writing on X: “I am opposed to this War,” adding: “The Constitution requires a vote.”
And when asked by a user on X if he was supportive of Trump’s actions in Iran, Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, was succinct: “No. War requires Congressional authorization.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Saturday morning that before the strikes began, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called all members of the “Gang of Eight” to notify them of the operation, and successfully reached seven of the lawmakers. The group is composed of the top four congressional leaders and top Democrats and Republicans on the House and Senate Intelligence Committees.
Other Republicans, meanwhile, believe the U.S.-Israeli strikes run counter to the “America First” mantra, which has become the foreign policy cornerstone of the MAGA movement.
While Trump campaigned on a platform of ending foreign entanglements and lowering costs, these Republicans said his action in Iran — which came after the deployment of troops on the ground to arrest Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro — are the opposite of what he promised Americans.
In a lengthy post on X, former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who resigned from Congress after a public falling out with the president, said Trump and Vance “promised to put America FIRST and Make America Great Again,” and are now breaking that promise.
“It’s always a lie and it’s always America Last,” she wrote Saturday, hours after the strikes began. “But it feels like the worst betrayal this time because it comes from the very man and the admin who we all believed was different and said no more.”
In a separate post later, Greene said the war would not lower inflation, make the cost of living affordable or fix the U.S. health care system.
“Now, America is going to be force fed and gas lighted all the “noble” reasons the American ‘Peace’ President and Pro-Peace administration had to go to war once again this year, after being in power for only a year,” she said, concluding, “Head-spinning, but maga.”
To be sure, Republicans critical of the attack are the exceptions so far. The vast majority of Republicans on Capitol Hill — including House and Senate leaders — are backing up Trump in the wake of the strikes, lauding the operation as decisive, well planned and necessary after diplomatic talks stalled.
“Despite the dogged efforts of the president and his administration, the Iranian regime has refused the diplomatic off-ramps that would peacefully resolve these national security concerns,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wrote on X. “I commend President Trump for taking action to thwart these threats.”
“Today, Iran is facing the severe consequences of its evil actions,” echoed Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
Even some of Trump’s most frequent detractors, who criticized the administration’s operation in Venezuela, did not immediately condemn the mission.
“I commend the extraordinary bravery, discipline, and professionalism of the troops who carried out this mission, and thank our allies for their swift and decisive coordination to protect our servicemembers in the immediate aftermath of these strikes,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, wrote on X. “We pray for their safety, and for the innocent civilian lives that were lost.”
“There is no question that Iran’s brutal regime must be held accountable for its ongoing aggression abroad and its ruthless repression of its own people,” she added.
Those conflicting opinions are set to come to a head at some point in the near future, when both chambers are expected to vote on a war powers resolution that would direct the president to remove U.S. armed forces from unauthorized hostilities in Iran. Before the attack, those votes were anticipated next week.
Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., are spearheading the effort in the House, while Paul and Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., are leading the effort in the Senate.
The votes will be interesting. While some Republicans are criticizing the operation and saying they’ll support a war powers resolution, some Democrats are breaking from the majority of their party and approving the strikes.
Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., for example, lauded the “decisive action to defend our national security, fight terror, protect our allies, and stand with the Iranian people who have been massacred in the streets for demanding freedom from the murderous Iranian regime.”
“I applaud the extraordinary bravery and professionalism of our servicemembers and pray for their safety as Iran and its terrorist proxies retaliate against American bases and our partners in the region,” he added.
For now, however, the debate over the strikes in Iran — and the direction of GOP foreign policy — is still evolving in the Republican Party, a reality that will likely continue in the days and weeks to come.
“AMERICA DOES NOT SUPPORT THIS!!!” Green wrote on X, adding in a separate post: “We voted for America First and ZERO wars.”
Mychael Schnell is a reporter for MS NOW.