2028 Democratic hopefuls slam Trump for Iran strikes

Some of the most prominent potential Democratic presidential candidates in 2028 are showing a united front in opposing US strikes on Iran, with several prominent figures accusing the president of… Donald Trump To wage an unnecessary and unconstitutional war.

Former Vice President Kamala Harris He said that Trump is “dragging the United States into a war that the American people do not want.”

“Let me be clear: I oppose a regime change war in Iran, and our forces are being harmed for Trump’s war of choice,” Harris said in a statement on Saturday following joint US and Israeli strikes across Iran.

She continued: “This is a dangerous and unnecessary gamble with the lives of Americans, and it also jeopardizes stability in the region and our standing in the world.” “What we are witnessing is not strength. It is recklessness dressed as determination.”

Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and California Gov. Gavin Newsom lead the 2028 Democratic candidates who have spoken out against US strikes on Iran. (Big Event Media/Getty Images for HumanX Conference; Reuters/Liesa Johannssen; Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Governor of California Gavin Newsom He delivered some of his harshest criticism during a book tour that stopped Saturday night in San Francisco, accusing Trump of manufacturing a crisis.

“It stems from weakness masquerading as strength,” Newsom said. “He lied to you. So reckless is the only way to describe it.”

“He has not described to the American people what the endgame is here,” Newsom added. “There wasn’t one. He made it.”

Newsom is currently promoting his memoir, “A Young Man in a Hurry,” with recent and upcoming stops in South Carolina, New Hampshire and Nevada — three key early voting states on the Democratic presidential calendar.

Earlier in the day, Newsom said that Iran’s “corrupt and oppressive” regime should never obtain nuclear weapons and that “Iran’s leadership must go.”

“But this does not justify the President of the United States engaging in an illegal and dangerous war that would unjustifiably risk the lives of our American soldiers and friends to the American people,” Newsom wrote on X.

California is home to more than half of the approximately 400,000 Iranian immigrants in the United States, including a large community in West Los Angeles often referred to as the “Tehrangeles.”

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., a prominent progressive voice and member of the Squad, accused Trump of dragging Americans into a conflict they do not support.

“The American people are once again being drawn into a war they did not want, by a president who does not care about the long-term consequences of his actions,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “This war is illegal. It is unnecessary. It will be disastrous.”

She continued: “Just this week, Iran and the United States were negotiating key measures that could have prevented war. The president withdrew from these discussions and chose war instead.”

“In moments of war, our Constitution is unequivocal: Congress authorizes war. But the president does not,” she said, pledging to vote “yes” on the resolution by Representatives Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie on war powers.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker criticized the strikes and accused Trump of ignoring Congress. (Daniel Poczarski/Getty Images for Vox Media)

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, another Democrat often mentioned as a potential 2028 contender, also criticized the strikes and accused Trump of ignoring Congress.

“There is no justification, no congressional authorization, and no clear purpose,” Pritzker wrote on X.

He continued: “Donald Trump is once again evading the Constitution and once again failing to explain why he pushed us into another war.” “Americans have demanded affordable housing and health care, not another endless conflict.”

“May God protect our forces,” Pritzker added.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro focused his criticism on war powers, saying Trump acted outside constitutional limits.

“In our democracy, the American people — through our elected representatives — decide when our country goes to war,” Shapiro said, adding that Trump “acted unilaterally — without the approval of Congress.”

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Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro focused his criticism on war powers, saying Trump acted outside constitutional limits. (Rachel Wisniewski/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Make no mistake, the Iranian regime oppresses its people… They should never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons,” he said. “But this does not justify the involvement of the President of the United States in an illegal and dangerous war.”

Shapiro added that “Congress must use all available powers” to prevent further escalation.

Former Minister of Transport Pete Buttigieg He also accused Trump of waging a “war of choice.”

“The President has launched our nation and our great military into a war of choice, risking American lives and resources, ignoring American law, and endangering our allies and partners. This nation has learned the hard way that unnecessary war, with no plan for what comes next, can lead to years of chaos and put America at greater risk,” Buttigieg wrote on X.

Buttigieg headed to early voting states, stopping in New Hampshire and Nevada in recent weeks to campaign for Democrats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who has been floated as a rising national figure within the party, said he lost friends in Iraq because of an illegal war, and he opposes the strikes.

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“Working-class youth should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that has never been explained or justified to the American people,” Gallego wrote on X. “We can support the democratic movement and the Iranian people without sending our troops to die.”

Fox News’ Daniel Scully and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.

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