Sen. Tom Cotton said Sunday that President Trump’s decision to greenlight the joint U.S.-Israel military strike against Iran has been welcome news in his home state of Arkansas, pushing back against the idea that Mr. Trump has lost some of his MAGA base.
Mr. Trump has faced blowback from current and former high-profile supporters, including former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and conservative commentator Tucker Carlson, who called the strike “absolutely disgusting and evil.”
Mr. Cotton said he has received a different message during a campaign swing that put him in touch with hundreds of voters over the last two days.
“I’ve been on the campaign trail all across Arkansas for the last two days, visiting with hundreds of Republicans,” Mr. Cotton said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “I haven’t heard a single Arkansan express anything but unqualified support for President Trump and for his decision to finally put America’s foot down and end 47 years of terror and revolutionary violence by the Islamic republic against the United States and our citizens.”
“And I suspect you’ll see overwhelming support from elected Republicans in Congress who are answerable to our voters in places like Arkansas and states all across the country when we’re back in the Capitol later this week,” he said.
That has largely been the case, with most opposition to Mr. Trump’s move coming from Democratic lawmakers.
The most notable exceptions have been Sen. Rand Paul and Rep. Thomas Massie, both libertarian-leaning Kentucky Republicans who have long warned against the costs of military adventurism. They are saying the strike is unconstitutional.
“As with all war, my first and purest instinct is to wish American soldiers safety and success in their mission,” Mr. Paul posted on social media. “But my oath of office is to the Constitution, so with studied care, I must oppose another presidential war.”
Ms. Greene, who left Congress this year after a very public break with Mr. Trump, has railed against the move, saying the president abandoned Americans suffering at home and broke his campaign promise of “no more foreign wars, and no more regime change.”
She also dismissed warnings that Iran was on the verge of having nuclear weapons.
“We have been spoon-fed that line for decades and Trump told us all that his bombing this past summer completely wiped it all out,” she said. “It’s always a lie and it’s always America Last.”
“But it feels like the worst betrayal this time because it comes from the very man and the administration who we all believed was different and said no more,” Ms. Greene said.
