[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 80 (Tuesday, May 14, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2797-S2798]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                            The Middle East

  Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, this morning's New York Times contained 
a stunning report that President Trump's top national security aid had 
been presented with a plan that would ``send as many as 120,000 troops 
to the Middle East should Iran attack American forces or accelerate 
work on nuclear weapons''--120,000 American troops in the Middle East. 
This report is completely baffling and incredibly alarming.
  What is the strategy here? The administration just began a maximum 
pressure campaign of sanctions against Iran to squeeze its economy. 
Doesn't it make sense to see if your policy is working before preparing 
for potential troop deployments, particularly in such large numbers? 
Six months ago the President was trying to pull U.S. forces out of the 
Middle East entirely, against the advice of many in our defense and 
diplomatic communities. Now his national security team is reviewing 
plans for war?
  Meanwhile, President Trump has not laid out what his plans are, what 
his long-term strategy in the Middle East is, or even given a speech 
about Iran. So why on Earth are his advisers discussing plans to 
entrench U.S. ground troops in the Middle East for who knows how long? 
It seems that hardliners in the administration are pushing the 
conversation in a very dangerous direction, and I am very concerned.
  U.S. foreign policy depends upon the stable execution of a consistent 
policy, but all too often the Trump administration has seemed capable 
of neither stability nor consistency. The erratic behavior of the 
President and the chaos he instills in his administration has led to 
numerous blunders at home and abroad. We should all hope that this 
report is just that--another blunder--and not the beginnings of a rush 
by the President's hawkish advisers to heighten military tensions with 
Iran.

[[Page S2798]]

  There are many questions for the President, but here are two. Why do 
we need more troops in the Iran area right now? Why? And why such a 
large number--120,000, which is as many as the total number of troops 
we have had in Iraq at significant times.