Editorial illustration
Senator Chris Van Hollen had a golden opportunity on CNN to show some basic patriotism and stand with the American president against a hostile foreign regime. Instead, the Maryland Democrat chose to dodge a simple question about whether he believes Iranian officials over President Trump while repeatedly calling the commander-in-chief a liar. When CNN’s Kasie Hunt asked Van Hollen directly who he believed regarding peace talks with Tehran, the senator couldn’t bring himself to side with his own country’s leader against a regime that chants “death to America” and funds terrorist groups across the Middle East. Is this what Democratic opposition has become, reflexively taking the side of America’s enemies just to score political points?
Van Hollen’s performance was a masterclass in evasion. Rather than answer whether he trusted Iranian state media over the President of the United States, he pivoted to a laundry list of grievances about Trump’s campaign promises. He accused the president of lying about keeping America out of Middle East wars, lying about Iran being an imminent threat, and lying about the country being on the precipice of nuclear weapons capability. What Van Hollen didn’t explain is why he’s more willing to believe Iranian propaganda outlets than the American intelligence community and the sitting president.
The White House didn’t let Van Hollen’s grandstanding go unanswered. According to White House spokesperson Anna Kelly, she delivered a devastating response that cut right to the heart of the senator’s credibility problems. “As someone who enjoys sipping margaritas with terrorists, Chris Van Hollen has zero credibility on this topic or anything else,” Kelly said, referencing Van Hollen’s infamous meeting last year with deported migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia. That meeting, where Van Hollen was photographed shaking hands with a man linked to terrorist organizations, became a symbol of how far some Democrats are willing to go to oppose Trump’s immigration enforcement. Now Van Hollen seems determined to compound that error by casting doubt on American diplomatic efforts while a war is ongoing.
President Trump announced Monday morning, as reported by the White House, that he would postpone military strikes against Iran’s power and energy infrastructure for five days after what he described as “very good and productive conversations” with Iranian officials. The president later told FOX Business that talks were ongoing and involved his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Iranian state media immediately denied any talks were happening, creating the exact scenario where Americans should want their elected officials to present a united front. Instead, Van Hollen used the moment to attack the president’s character and sow doubt about American diplomatic efforts. When your first instinct during an international crisis is to side with foreign state media against your own president, perhaps it’s time to question whether you should be representing American interests at all.
Providence watches over the bold.
About The Author
