Washington- While the early hours of the dawn of last Friday were witnessing an accelerated exchange of missile attacks between Israel and Iran, the repercussions of this military escalation seemed not only limited to the direct confrontation square, but also extended to the halls American Congress In Washington, decision -making circles are in Republican Party More specifically.
Israeli strikes created a state of controversy between legislators from the two Republican partiesDemocraticSome of whom expressed their direct support for what they described as “the legitimate right of Israel to defend itself,” while others expressed concern that the military path would lead to implicating the United States in a conflict that does not serve its strategic interests.
Democratic division
In the hours before the Israeli air strikes on Iran, the democratic lawmakers were standing on a unified front, driven by the physical attack incident to which Senator Alex Badia was subjected to, and participated in the march that roamed the corridors Capitol They are required to open an official investigation into the circumstances of the accident.
However, the Israeli raids were unexpected and sparked a state of division among the Democrats on the military escalation made by the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu– Required toFor the International Criminal Court On charges of war crimes in Gaza- towards Tehran.
Democrats have always criticized the Israeli aggression on Gaza since October 2023, warning of the repercussions of the catastrophic war. These took the same position towards the escalation with Iran, noting that the world no longer tolerates new wars.
Senator Jack Reed, one of the most prominent democratic members of the Senate Armed Forces Committee, warned that the Israeli escalation not only threatens the lives of innocent people, but also ravages the stability of the Middle East and the safety of the American forces in the region.
In turn, Senator Jin Shaheen, a member of the Hawaiian State Relations Committee, expressed its concern, describing the attacks as “a deep concern that would inevitably lead to retaliatory responses that may go out of control.”
For his part, Representative Joaquin Castro asked, via the “X” platform, about the significance of the slogan “America first“Who was raised by the American President Donald Trump“What sense is that if Trump allows Netanyahu to drag the country into a war that the Americans do not want?”
On the other hand, the democratic camp did not deviate from voices that defended the Israeli attacks on Iran and considered it a necessary step to deter its nuclear ambition. Representative Jared Moskovitz confirmed that allowing Iran to develop a nuclear weapon “will expose Israel, the United States and its regional partners to a permanent and direct danger.”
“Mag” warns
In the midst of the burning war between Israel and Iran, the Republicans found themselves in front of a more divided scene. One of the most important electoral promises of President Trump.
The Maga Movement to end the American intervention in the wars of the Middle East was a sudden challenge to the semi -sacred relationship in Washington between the United States and Israel.
In the eyes of this current, the American intervention must be reduced to support everything that Israel is doing, which it often sees harmful to interests Washington Various in the Middle East. Supporters of this trend doubt the agreement of Israel’s interests always with interests US.
The Israeli strikes, which came a day before the sixth round of the negotiations of the nuclear program between the United States and Iran led to fueling the discussion inside the “Maga” stream circles on the degree of compatibility of the “special relationship” between America and Israel with the principles of the foreign policy of “America First”.
The “Stand together” research organization, funded by the Window Republic Koukh family, recently published a paper that warned of the nature of the relationship between the United States and Israel, and demanded to reduce the Israeli dependence on the United States. The paper said, “Israel is the safest and a diplomatic connection that will be less dependent on American military support and more on regional partnerships to ensure its future,” the paper said.
The Maga Movement is afraid that the American forces in the Middle East are air by air and sea to shoot down the Iranian missiles that are launched on Israel, may ultimately push for direct intervention against Iran. He also believes that huge military moves such as transporting missiles or aircraft carriers to the Middle East would endanger the American military preparation in a possible conflict with China or North Korea.
“It is necessary to distinguish the American defense support for Israel, which I have been taking place since Iran’s response to Israel’s attacks in helping to monitor Iranian missiles and marches, while offensive support is completely different from what is happening now, and it is not yet, and it may not happen,” a former American diplomat told Al -Jazeera Net.
For his part, the Republican Representative in the House of Representatives, Thomas Massi, conducted a poll among his followers, and asked the question “Should the American weapon be presented to Israel to continue to attack Iran, and more than 126 thousand participants responded, and 85% of them said that Washington should stop shipping weapons to Israel, while only 15% agreed.
The pretexts of the new conservatives
The traditional “New Conservatives” stream within the Republican camp reiterated the visions that were not yet September 11 attacksSeptember 2001, which prompted my war Iraq AndAfghanistan And occupy them for nearly two decades.
This current believes that maintaining the “special relationship” is still an integral part of Trump’s foreign policy, and that the demand that Trump be abandoned by Israel is a strategic mistake that harms Washington’s interests, and that these calls are isolationism and harmful in essence.
This trend is repeated that Israel is fighting Iran on behalf of the United States and the whole West, and they go further by saying that the Gulf states welcomes weakening Iran and limiting its military capabilities.
After the first Israeli raid on the Iranian facilities, the data and publications poured on the “X” platform of Netanyahu supporters of Republicans, during which they expressed their support for military operations, and praised its effectiveness, most notably the Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike JohnsonHe was quick to say that Israel “exercises its legitimate right to Self -defense“.
For his part, the Republican Senator praised Tom CotonChairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, via “X” with “the courage and boldness” of the Israeli Prime Minister, and described the Senator Lindsey GrahamThat it is “one of the most impressive military and intelligence strikes in the history of Israel.”
Prior to the start of the Israeli operation, the Ronald Reagan Institute conducted an opinion poll about their opinion that Israel may launch air strikes on Iranian nuclear establishments if the diplomatic track failed. The data showed that about 60% of Republicans supported the strikes, compared to only 35% of independents and 32% of Democrats.
45% of the general participants said they support air strikes, while 37% opposed them, and 18% expressed hesitating and not confirmation.
In an interview with Al -Jazeera Net, the former official of the Republican Party official, the importance of division between the Republicans. He said, “The supporters of the Maga Movement tend to be less interfering, but they believe that the Iranian regime is still the largest country of terrorism and that its nuclear program is a threat.”
“As long as Israel focuses its attacks on military and infrastructure targets, most Republicans and Democrats will also be united to support Israel’s efforts.”
“It seems that the traditional Republican division between Maga and the traditional current is primarily limited to Ukraine’s support, not Israel. Looking at the facts on the ground, this position is unstable, but it reflects the influence of President Trump on the thinking of Maga supporters.”
Trump administration position
President Trump expresses conflicting situations that do not reflect a clear and clear stance towards the war between Israel and Iran. Where Trump repeats the call to reach a new nuclear agreement between his country and Iran, prevents Tehran from developing its programs and manufacturing a nuclear weapon, and does not hide his desire to invest the war for this purpose, but at the same time confirms Washington’s distance from itself from the conflict.
After midnight on Saturday, Trump tweeted on the Truth Social platform, stressing that his country did not participate in the attacks on Iran, and at the same time warning Tehran against the consequences of launching any attack on his country or its interests in any way.
On the other hand, it is considered JD VansVice President, one of the prominent supporters of self -control in foreign policy within the Republican Party, and did not rule out the necessity of reviewing the rules of the special relationship with Israel.
At the same time, the Heritig Foundation, which is considered an intellectual container of the “Mag” movement, has published a report calling for the Trump administration to “redirect its relationship with Israel” from a special relationship “to an equal strategic partnership” based on mutual interests.
The famous journalist, who is close to Trump, Takr Karlson, did not hesitate to lead the Maga Movement directly, directing his criticism to the symbols of the Israeli lobby or in the United States, including businessmen, media and thinkers.
Carlson argued that fears of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon in the near future are unfounded, and said that the war with it will only lead to “thousands” of American victims in the Middle East.
Carlson said that the direct American interference in the war with Iran “will be a slap over the faces of millions of voters who have made their votes in the hope of forming a government that puts the interests of the United States in the first place.”
Carlson tweeted, attacking any calls for engaging in the war alongside Israel. “The real difference is not between people who support Israel and people who support Iran or the Palestinians, the real difference is among those who always encourage violence, and those who seek to prevent it, between the advocates of war and peace makers,” he said.
And he answered the question “Who are the advocates of war?” He said, “This includes anyone calling Donald Trump today to demand air strikes and other direct American military intervention in the war against Iran.”
He did not hesitate to mention a number of these and said that in that list: Sean Hanity (an announcer in Fox Network) and Mark Levin (presenter of a program on Fox) andRobert Murdoch (Jewish billionaire, owner of the Wall Street Journal) and Aikbar for a Motor (a billionaire and an American Jewish businessman)Myriam Adeleson (Jewish billionaire).