US senator Ruben Gallego says Trump administration had no clear Iran war exit plan

Donald Trump. Pic/AFP

US Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego has said that President Donald Trump's administration entered the Iran war without a clear plan, an exit strategy or a defined mission, leaving US military personnel to bear the consequences.

Gallego, an Iraq War veteran who served in the Marine Corps, said on Sunday that the conflict had exposed serious failures in planning and leadership at the Pentagon. "This administration did not plan for this war. They did not plan how to get out of this war, did not really understand how this war was going to escalate," the Senator told ABC News.

The Arizona Senator was responding to reports of exhaustion, falling morale and mental health concerns aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln. The aircraft carrier has been at sea for 268 days. Its 5,000 sailors and Marines have spent more than 200 consecutive days without a port call while supporting US operations in the Middle East.

Gallego said he had spoken to the spouse of a service member aboard the carrier three days earlier. She shared recent text messages and photographs from her husband, he added. "Whatever the Admiral was saying that this is a problem of the past, that's really not the case," Gallego said.

US Central Command Chief Admiral Brad Cooper visited the carrier and said some of the reported problems had been resolved. The USS George Washington is expected to relieve the Lincoln.

Gallego said the prolonged deployment could create maintenance and retention problems. Experienced personnel could leave the Navy after returning home and discussing the deployment with their families, he warned.

"They're going to have to think twice because look at how this leadership is treating them," the Senator said. Gallego accused Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth of being unqualified to lead the Pentagon.

He also said Trump had shown a dismissive attitude towards the concerns of service members and their families. The Senator defended Democratic resistance to a requested $17 billion appropriation for US military operations in the Iran war.

"We still don't quite understand why we went to Iran. We don't know exactly how we're going to get out of Iran," he said. Gallego added that the US Congress should first receive clear answers about the administration's objectives and its plan for ending the conflict.

"I don't want to find ourselves in another 20-year war because we're afraid to actually put a stop to the money that is essentially funding this illegal war," he said. The Senator added: "What is the President's goal in how he's going to get us out of Iran before we start getting more and more money?"

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