(WAVE/WKYT) – Two Kentucky Republicans, most often at odds with President Trump, both have serious questions about why and how the war in Iran is being fought.
Senator Rand Paul and Congressman Thomas Massie spoke on the issue at a stop with voters in Shelbyville.
Massie, a constant critic of the deficit, questioned the cost and the Trump administration’s request for an additional $200 billion.
“Initially, the war cost a lot, but it looks like it’s costing about $1 billion a day,” Massie said. “So, if they want $200 billion to continue, that begs the question: How long do they reasonably expect the war to go on? If we think it’s going to go on for half a year, then we need to hear what the objectives are.”
Senator Paul, also a critic of budget deficits, went further in criticizing the war when asked if he thought the President had made a mistake.
“Does it further our national interest to be at war in Iran? And I don’t think it does,” Paul said. “I think that when you look, whether there were nuclear, imminently coming upon a nuclear weapon, most of our intelligence agencies, if not all of them, said that wasn’t true. So I think that in looking at it, I think we would’ve been better serving our national interests, not to be involved in the war.”
When asked the same question, Massie said he chooses not to look into the rearview mirror, but he wants the war over as quickly as possible.
In response to Massie’s comments, State Senator candidate Ed Gallrein provided the following statement:
“If Mr. Massie thinks President Trump is a liability with voters who backed him three times, he’s clearly spending more time on CNN in Washington than with the people back home.”