Washington Examiner columnist Guy Benson said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is “looking over his shoulder” to not upset his voter base when making statements on Iran.
Schumer got into a heated exchange with MS Now’s Joe Scarborough when asked if it’s good that Iran’s military infrastructure has been degraded in the U.S.’s conflict with them on Monday. Schumer argued this is “a premature question,” and asked “what’s going to happen in the next several months,” though Scarborough countered that the answer to his question is “yes,” and most U.S. residents view Iran’s military degradation as “a good thing.”
Benson noted that Schumer, a Jewish senator, has supported the state of Israel “for decades.” But the “center of gravity” of his voting “left-wing base” is moving toward an anti-Israel stance, preventing him from saying it’s good that Iran’s military capabilities have been handicapped by the United States and Israel.
“He can say it’s fine to look ahead and have concerns and wonder about endgame and have any number of worries about — that’s all fair and fine,” Benson said on Fox Business’s Varney & Co. Tuesday. “Scarborough’s point is like, ‘No, but you’re seeing their missiles get destroyed, you’re seeing their nuclear program get obliterated, isn’t that unto itself a good thing?’
“And I think Schumer, looking over his shoulder at the voters he needs and the people that they’re electing now around him, trying to keep his leadership position, he can’t even answer that question in the most obvious way possible because of some of these pressures that you’re talking about,” Benson said.
Benson concluded that Schumer’s response to Iran’s strikes is “eye-opening and pretty disturbing.”
IRAN’S SHAKEDOWN IN THE STRAIT
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that both Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are involved in the peace talks with Iran. Trump originally tapped special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to lead these talks, though Iranian officials refused to negotiate with either.
The Trump administration is also considering whether to deploy a combat brigade from the 82nd Airborne Division’s quick reaction team.
