[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 49 (Wednesday, March 18, 2026)]
[House]
[Pages H2586-H2587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           BETRAYAL OF TRUST

  (Mr. MENEFEE asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MENEFEE. Mr. Speaker, I was 5 years old in 1993 when Tupac Shakur 
said:

       You know, it's funny when it rains it pours
       They got money for wars, but can't feed the poor.

  Today, those words feel as real as ever.
  President Trump, no one wants this war, and the American people 
literally cannot afford it.
  Mr. Speaker, I am not an economist, but I understand that the U.S. 
war with Iran has shaken global markets, driven oil prices up more than 
40 percent, and is even raising fears of a worldwide recession, 
impacting flights and the cost of goods. We feel it at home, where the 
price of gas is far more expensive than it has ever been.

[[Page H2587]]

  This is not just about economics. It is about accountability. As a 
lawyer, I understand all too well that every President, including 
Donald Trump, takes an oath to defend the Constitution. That 
Constitution gives Congress, not the President, the power to declare 
war. Yet, Congress was sidelined. The American people were given no 
clear cause, no clear strategy, and no clear endgame.
  We cannot afford this--not economically and not morally. America's 
conscience cannot afford it.
  When leaders promise peace but deliver war, that is not just a policy 
failure. It is a betrayal of trust.

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