TruthOrFake Logo
TruthOrFake
Fact Check: Democratic governors avoid criticizing Trump's Iran strikes amid potential war.

Fact Check: Democratic governors avoid criticizing Trump's Iran strikes amid potential war.

Published June 24, 2025
ByFactChecker 1.1 avatarFactChecker 1.1
±
VERDICT
Partially True

# Fact Check: Democratic Governors Avoid Criticizing Trump's Iran Strikes Amid Potential War ## What We Know Following President Donald Trump's annou...

Fact Check: Democratic Governors Avoid Criticizing Trump's Iran Strikes Amid Potential War

What We Know

Following President Donald Trump's announcement of U.S. military strikes against Iranian nuclear sites, there has been a notable division among Democratic leaders regarding their public responses. While some progressive Democrats have voiced strong opposition to the strikes, mainstream Democratic leaders have adopted a more cautious stance. For instance, Senator Tim Kaine criticized Trump's actions as "horrible judgment," while other prominent Democrats have remained relatively silent or have chosen to emphasize the need for congressional approval before any military action, reflecting a desire to avoid a direct confrontation with Trump's administration (AP News, NBC News).

Progressive figures like Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Ro Khanna have called for a clear anti-war stance, with Khanna introducing legislation to limit Trump's military actions against Iran unless explicitly authorized by Congress (AP News, PBS News). However, many Democratic governors, including those seen as potential 2028 presidential candidates, have not publicly criticized Trump's strikes, which may indicate a strategic decision to avoid alienating voters amid a politically sensitive situation (NBC News).

Analysis

The claim that Democratic governors are avoiding criticism of Trump's Iran strikes is partially supported by the evidence. While some Democratic leaders have indeed spoken out against the strikes, the overall response from governors and party leadership has been muted. This silence can be interpreted as a strategic choice to maintain party unity and avoid backlash from constituents who may have mixed feelings about military intervention in Iran.

For example, the AP News report highlights that while progressive Democrats are pushing for a unified opposition, party leaders are treading cautiously, indicating a divide within the party (AP News). This cautious approach is further reflected in the statements from figures like Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, who emphasized the need for congressional approval rather than outright condemnation of Trump's actions (AP News).

Moreover, the political landscape is complicated by the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the Democratic Party's struggle to balance its base's anti-war sentiments with the traditional pro-Israel stance. This has led to a hesitance among some governors to publicly criticize Trump, as they navigate the potential electoral implications of their statements (NBC News, PBS News).

However, it is important to note that not all Democratic leaders are silent. Figures like Senator Kaine and Sanders have been vocal in their opposition, which suggests that while some governors may be avoiding criticism, there is still a significant faction within the party that is actively opposing Trump's military actions (AP News, PBS News).

Conclusion

The claim that "Democratic governors avoid criticizing Trump's Iran strikes amid potential war" is Partially True. While it is accurate that many Democratic governors and party leaders have not publicly condemned Trump's actions, this silence is not universal. Progressive Democrats have been vocal in their opposition, indicating a split within the party. The cautious approach taken by some governors appears to be a strategic decision aimed at maintaining party unity and navigating a complex political landscape.

Sources

  1. Democrats are at odds over Trump's strikes of Iran nuclear sites | AP News
  2. US Democrats introduce resolution to check Trump's use of military against Iran | Reuters
  3. Was Trump's Iran Attack Illegal? Presidential War Powers, ... | New York Times
  4. 5 political takeaways from the U.S. strike on Iran | NPR
  5. D.C. region leaders criticize, endorse U.S. attack on Iran | Washington Post
  6. Democrats struggle to come up with a unified response to Trump's Iran ... | NBC News
  7. Democrats are at odds over Israel-Iran war as Trump announces U.S ... | PBS News

Have a claim you want to verify? It's 100% Free!

Our AI-powered fact-checker analyzes claims against thousands of reliable sources and provides evidence-based verdicts in seconds. Completely free with no registration required.

💡 Try:
"Coffee helps you live longer"
✓100% Free
✓No Registration
✓Instant Results

Comments

Leave a comment

Loading comments...

More Fact Checks to Explore

Discover similar claims and stay informed with these related fact-checks

🔍
Partially True
🎯 Similar

Fact Check: Paul Krugman Paul Krugman We’re All Rats Now Time to take a stand, again, against racism Paul Krugman Jun 30, 2025 Zohran Mamdani’s upset victory in New York’s Democratic primary has created panic in MAGAland. Stephen Miller, the architect of Donald Trump’s deportation policies, waxed apocalyptic: Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, declared that New York is about to turn into “Caracas on the Hudson.” And Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama basically declared New York’s voters subhuman, saying: These inner-city rats, they live off the federal government. And that’s one reason we’re $37 trillion in debt. And it’s time we find these rats and we send them back home, that are living off the American taxpayers that are working very hard every week to pay taxes. These reactions are vile, and they’re also dishonest. Whatever these men may claim, it’s all about bigotry. Miller isn’t concerned about the state of New York “society.” What bothers him is the idea of nonwhite people having political power. Bessent isn’t really deeply worried about Zamdani’s economic ideas. But he feels free, maybe even obliged, to slander a foreign-born Muslim with language he would never use about a white Christian politician, even if that politician were (like some of his colleagues in the Trump administration) a total crackpot. And while Tuberville stands out even within his caucus as an ignorant fool, his willingness to use dehumanizing language about millions of people shows that raw racism is rapidly becoming mainstream in American politics. Remember, during the campaign both Trump and JD Vance amplified the slanders about Haitians eating pets. And now that they’re in office, you can see the resurgence of raw racism all across Trump administration policies, large and small. You can see it, for example, in the cuts at the National Institutes of Health, which are so tilted against racial minorities that a federal judge — one appointed by Ronald Reagan! — declared I’ve never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable. I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this. You can see it in the renaming of military bases after Confederate generals — that is, traitors who fought for slavery. You can even see it in a change in the military’s shaving policy that is clearly custom-designed to drive Black men — who account for around a quarter of the Army’s new recruits — out of the service. So racism and bigotry are back, big time. Who’s safe? Nobody. Are you a legal immigrant? Well, the Supreme Court just allowed Trump to summarily strip half a million U.S. residents of that status, and only a fool would imagine that this is the end of the story. Anyway, when masked men who claim to be ICE agents but refuse to show identification are grabbing people off the streets because they think those people look illegal, does legal status even matter? Does it even matter if you’re a U.S. citizen? And the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is set to massively increase ICE’s funding — basically setting up a huge national secret police force. Now, maybe you imagine that you yourself won’t suffer from this new reign of bigotry and imagine that everyone you care about is similarly safe. But if that’s what you think, you’re likely to face a rude awakening. I personally don’t have any illusions of safety. Yes, I’m a native-born white citizen. But my wife and her family are Black, and some of my friends and relatives are foreign-born U.S. citizens. Furthermore, I’m Jewish, and anyone who knows their history realizes that whenever right-wing bigotry is on the ascendant, we’re always next in line. Are there really people out there naïve enough to believe MAGA’s claims to be against antisemitism, who can’t see the transparent cynicism and dishonesty? The fact is that the Trump administration already contains a number of figures with strong ties to antisemitic extremists. The Great Replacement Theory, which has de facto become part of MAGA’s ideology, doesn’t just say that there’s a conspiracy to replace whites with people of color; it says that it’s a Jewish conspiracy. So I’m definitely scared of what the many antisemites inside or with close ties to the Trump administration may eventually do. And no, I’m not frightened at all by the prospect that New York may soon have a somewhat leftist Muslim mayor. Anyway, my personal fears are beside the point. Everyone who cares about keeping America America needs to take a stand against the resurgence of bigotry. Because the truth is that we’re all rats now. MUSICAL CODA Discussion about this post Michael Roseman Jun 30 Edited For a while, American bigotry was ashamed of itself. Or pretended to be. Now it runs the government. Reply Share 106 replies Megan Rothery Jun 30 Edited Take a stand - Call. Write. Email. Protest. Unrelentingly. Use/share this spreadsheet as a resource to call/email/write members of Congress, the Cabinet and news organizations. Reach out to those in your own state, as well as those in others. Use your voice and make some “good trouble” ❤️‍🩹🤍💙 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit?usp=drivesdk Reply Share 31 replies 852 more comments... No posts Ready for more? © 2025 Paul Krugman Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice Start writing Get the app Substack is the home for great culture

Detailed fact-check analysis of: Paul Krugman Paul Krugman We’re All Rats Now Time to take a stand, again, against racism Paul Krugman Jun 30, 2025 Zohran Mamdani’s upset victory in New York’s Democratic primary has created panic in MAGAland. Stephen Miller, the architect of Donald Trump’s deportation policies, waxed apocalyptic: Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, declared that New York is about to turn into “Caracas on the Hudson.” And Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama basically declared New York’s voters subhuman, saying: These inner-city rats, they live off the federal government. And that’s one reason we’re $37 trillion in debt. And it’s time we find these rats and we send them back home, that are living off the American taxpayers that are working very hard every week to pay taxes. These reactions are vile, and they’re also dishonest. Whatever these men may claim, it’s all about bigotry. Miller isn’t concerned about the state of New York “society.” What bothers him is the idea of nonwhite people having political power. Bessent isn’t really deeply worried about Zamdani’s economic ideas. But he feels free, maybe even obliged, to slander a foreign-born Muslim with language he would never use about a white Christian politician, even if that politician were (like some of his colleagues in the Trump administration) a total crackpot. And while Tuberville stands out even within his caucus as an ignorant fool, his willingness to use dehumanizing language about millions of people shows that raw racism is rapidly becoming mainstream in American politics. Remember, during the campaign both Trump and JD Vance amplified the slanders about Haitians eating pets. And now that they’re in office, you can see the resurgence of raw racism all across Trump administration policies, large and small. You can see it, for example, in the cuts at the National Institutes of Health, which are so tilted against racial minorities that a federal judge — one appointed by Ronald Reagan! — declared I’ve never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable. I’ve sat on this bench now for 40 years. I’ve never seen government racial discrimination like this. You can see it in the renaming of military bases after Confederate generals — that is, traitors who fought for slavery. You can even see it in a change in the military’s shaving policy that is clearly custom-designed to drive Black men — who account for around a quarter of the Army’s new recruits — out of the service. So racism and bigotry are back, big time. Who’s safe? Nobody. Are you a legal immigrant? Well, the Supreme Court just allowed Trump to summarily strip half a million U.S. residents of that status, and only a fool would imagine that this is the end of the story. Anyway, when masked men who claim to be ICE agents but refuse to show identification are grabbing people off the streets because they think those people look illegal, does legal status even matter? Does it even matter if you’re a U.S. citizen? And the One Big Beautiful Bill Act is set to massively increase ICE’s funding — basically setting up a huge national secret police force. Now, maybe you imagine that you yourself won’t suffer from this new reign of bigotry and imagine that everyone you care about is similarly safe. But if that’s what you think, you’re likely to face a rude awakening. I personally don’t have any illusions of safety. Yes, I’m a native-born white citizen. But my wife and her family are Black, and some of my friends and relatives are foreign-born U.S. citizens. Furthermore, I’m Jewish, and anyone who knows their history realizes that whenever right-wing bigotry is on the ascendant, we’re always next in line. Are there really people out there naïve enough to believe MAGA’s claims to be against antisemitism, who can’t see the transparent cynicism and dishonesty? The fact is that the Trump administration already contains a number of figures with strong ties to antisemitic extremists. The Great Replacement Theory, which has de facto become part of MAGA’s ideology, doesn’t just say that there’s a conspiracy to replace whites with people of color; it says that it’s a Jewish conspiracy. So I’m definitely scared of what the many antisemites inside or with close ties to the Trump administration may eventually do. And no, I’m not frightened at all by the prospect that New York may soon have a somewhat leftist Muslim mayor. Anyway, my personal fears are beside the point. Everyone who cares about keeping America America needs to take a stand against the resurgence of bigotry. Because the truth is that we’re all rats now. MUSICAL CODA Discussion about this post Michael Roseman Jun 30 Edited For a while, American bigotry was ashamed of itself. Or pretended to be. Now it runs the government. Reply Share 106 replies Megan Rothery Jun 30 Edited Take a stand - Call. Write. Email. Protest. Unrelentingly. Use/share this spreadsheet as a resource to call/email/write members of Congress, the Cabinet and news organizations. Reach out to those in your own state, as well as those in others. Use your voice and make some “good trouble” ❤️‍🩹🤍💙 https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13lYafj0P-6owAJcH-5_xcpcRvMUZI7rkBPW-Ma9e7hw/edit?usp=drivesdk Reply Share 31 replies 852 more comments... No posts Ready for more? © 2025 Paul Krugman Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice Start writing Get the app Substack is the home for great culture

Jul 20, 2025
Read more →
Fact Check: Melania Trump could be deported under new rules if a Democratic president is elected.
Partially True
🎯 Similar

Fact Check: Melania Trump could be deported under new rules if a Democratic president is elected.

Detailed fact-check analysis of: Melania Trump could be deported under new rules if a Democratic president is elected.

Jul 6, 2025
Read more →
Fact Check: Former Georgia Democratic House candidate Carl Sprayberry, who publicly called for the assassination of President Donald Trump in a social media post, has been arrested as part of a sweeping, multi-agency childtrafficking operation.
Unverified
🎯 Similar

Fact Check: Former Georgia Democratic House candidate Carl Sprayberry, who publicly called for the assassination of President Donald Trump in a social media post, has been arrested as part of a sweeping, multi-agency childtrafficking operation.

Detailed fact-check analysis of: Former Georgia Democratic House candidate Carl Sprayberry, who publicly called for the assassination of President Donald Trump in a social media post, has been arrested as part of a sweeping, multi-agency childtrafficking operation.

Aug 2, 2025
Read more →
Fact Check: Democratic voters are demanding violence to counter Trump's agenda.
False

Fact Check: Democratic voters are demanding violence to counter Trump's agenda.

Detailed fact-check analysis of: Democratic voters are demanding violence to counter Trump's agenda.

Jul 7, 2025
Read more →
Fact Check: "HERE ARE SOME STATS FOX NEWS DOESN'T WANT YOU TO KNOW. 52 MILLION JOBS HAVE BEEN CREATED SINCE THE COLD WAR. DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 50 MILLION. REPUBLICAN ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 1.9 MILLION. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON: RECESSION!" - GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM OCCUPY DEMOCRATS
Partially True

Fact Check: "HERE ARE SOME STATS FOX NEWS DOESN'T WANT YOU TO KNOW. 52 MILLION JOBS HAVE BEEN CREATED SINCE THE COLD WAR. DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 50 MILLION. REPUBLICAN ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 1.9 MILLION. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON: RECESSION!" - GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM OCCUPY DEMOCRATS

Detailed fact-check analysis of: "HERE ARE SOME STATS FOX NEWS DOESN'T WANT YOU TO KNOW. 52 MILLION JOBS HAVE BEEN CREATED SINCE THE COLD WAR. DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 50 MILLION. REPUBLICAN ADMINISTRATIONS CREATED 1.9 MILLION. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON: RECESSION!" - GOVERNOR GAVIN NEWSOM OCCUPY DEMOCRATS

Jul 26, 2025
Read more →
Fact Check: George Soros and the Open Society Foundations (OSF): They have been the leading donors to the Democratic Party over the past 15+ years. They have been the leading funders behind Black Lives Matter (BLM) and Antifa "terrorist riots." They have funded campaigns of dozens of corrupt judges, District Attorneys (DAs), and Attorneys General (AGs). Soros has publicly stated his intention to dismantle the American constitutional republic. The Democratic Party is aligned with this anti-American agenda.
Partially True

Fact Check: George Soros and the Open Society Foundations (OSF): They have been the leading donors to the Democratic Party over the past 15+ years. They have been the leading funders behind Black Lives Matter (BLM) and Antifa "terrorist riots." They have funded campaigns of dozens of corrupt judges, District Attorneys (DAs), and Attorneys General (AGs). Soros has publicly stated his intention to dismantle the American constitutional republic. The Democratic Party is aligned with this anti-American agenda.

Detailed fact-check analysis of: George Soros and the Open Society Foundations (OSF): They have been the leading donors to the Democratic Party over the past 15+ years. They have been the leading funders behind Black Lives Matter (BLM) and Antifa "terrorist riots." They have funded campaigns of dozens of corrupt judges, District Attorneys (DAs), and Attorneys General (AGs). Soros has publicly stated his intention to dismantle the American constitutional republic. The Democratic Party is aligned with this anti-American agenda.

Aug 18, 2025
Read more →
Explore All Fact Checks