Vice President JD Vance defended President Donald Trump‘s decision to bomb Iran without a congressional vote authorizing the strikes, a move that also appeared to risk contravening the principles of the America First agenda as some MAGA adherents understood it while Trump was on the campaign trail.
As seen below on NBC’s Meet the Press, Vance said: “I certainly empathize with Americans who are exhausted after 25 years of foreign entanglements in the Middle East. I understand the concern, but the difference is that back then we had dumb presidents and now we have a president who actually knows how to accomplish America’s national security objectives.”
[Note: Presidents over the past 25 years include Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Trump.]
Vance added, “So this isn’t going to be some some long drawn-out thing. We got in, we did the job of setting their nuclear program back. We’re going to now work to permanently dismantle that nuclear program over the coming years.”
This is laughable on so many levels https://t.co/jnK4nO4SDo
— Amy McGrath (@AmyMcGrathKY) June 22, 2025
Vance’s simplification of a complex situation brought out many critics, including former Marine fighter pilot Amy McGrath, who flew 89 combat missions against al-Qaeda and the Taliban during her 20 years of service in the Marine Corps. McGrath responded to Vance’s comments by writing: “This is laughable on so many levels.”
Note: When McGrath was running for Senate (as a moderate Democrat in Kentucky) in 2019, she was asked for her opinion of Trump and said: “I want to do what’s best for Kentucky, and when President Trump has good ideas, I’m going to be for them. To me it’s not about your political party, it’s not about wearing a red jersey or blue jersey.”
McGrath lost the 2020 Senate election to incumbent Sen. Mitch McConnell (R) who approved of Trump’s decision to bomb Iran this week.
The Kentucky Senator — who has worked with all the presidents Vance called “dumb” — wrote on social media: “Seizing this opportunity is not an escalation toward war — it is a prudent response to the warmongers in Tehran. Iran would be foolish to misunderstand American resolve.”
McConnell added: “I commend the President for authorizing decisive action and all U.S. servicemembers responsible for carrying it out.”