https://www.axios.com/2024/01/28/gop-biden-iran-soldier-deaths
#GOP hawks press #Biden to target #Iran directly over soldiers' deaths
Andrew Solender
..."President Biden is facing calls from #congressional hawks to escalate attacks on Iran-linked targets, including within Iran itself, in response to the deaths of three U.S. service members in a drone attack in Jordan.
Why it matters: Heeding those calls would risk significantly expanding and drawing the U.S. further into an already growing regional conflict that has sprung up as a result of the Israel-Hamas war.
...
The U.S. has been conducting strikes against Iranian-backed militias in Yemen and Iraq in response to attacks on U.S. forces over American support for Israel.
Biden has faced rebukes from more dovish lawmakers on the ideological flanks of both parties for not seeking prior congressional authorization for the strikes, but hawks have also criticized them as insufficient.
McConnell, in a Senate floor speech on Thursday, accused Biden of playing "whack-a-mole against warehouses and launch sites," adding, "Until Iran feels that its own interests and its own IRGC officers across the region are threatened, attacks on U.S. forces will continue."
...
Biden would likely face an outcry from many members of his own party if he retaliated to the degree some Republicans are advocating for.
Lawmakers across the political spectrum, and progressives in particular, have been increasingly critical of the administration's broad interpretation of executive war powers in recent weeks."...
