U.S. Democratic politicians expressed skepticism and alarm after receiving closed-door briefings from key Trump administration officials about escalating tensions with Iran.
The briefings were given by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan, Chairman of Joint Chiefs General Joseph Dunford and an official from the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency.
Some House Democrats accused the administration officials of twisting intelligence to make the case for what they see as an aggressive response to any Iranian actions.
"In my opinion, there was not any information there that pointed to any reason why we should be engaging in talk of war with Iran," a Democratic member of the House Armed Services Committee, Representative Ruben Gallego said.
Democrats also faulted Trump’s administration for, as they put it, lacking a long-term plan to deal with Iran now that Washington has withdrawn from the nuclear agreement, Reuters reported.
After speaking to lawmakers, Shanahan said the administration does not want the situation to escalate and that its actions to date had deterred attacks by Iran on U.S. forces.
"This is about deterrence, not about war. We’re not about going to war," he told reporters.
