Jonathan Roman | Staff Writer
FIU College Republicans gathered at the Graham Center to discuss the United States war with Iran. Members of the GOP weighed in on how the conflict has progressed and if President Trump has made any significant gains after 6 months of the war.
The event started with Secretary Sam Fernandez giving a brief lecture on war, and the philosophy of why countries engage in war.
The consensus in the room was skeptical and at times negative. The majority of the members did not support the conflict, adding to the growing skepticism in the Republican Party.
Some members believe it’s too early to suggest the US has not made any gains, and results will show in time.
The majority sentiment is also reflected in multiple polls that show the war in Iran is unfavorable. A CNN poll on Sep 22. Showed that 64 percent of Americans believe the US is not winning the war. Roughly 2 in 3 Americans said in the poll that Trump is not doing enough to end the conflict.
The Strait of Hormuz has become the focal point of the conflict as gas prices rise across the globe. And as the war with Iran rages and widens across the Middle East region, Trump addressed the United Nations assembly on Sep. 22.
Trump further reiterated that “Iran will never have a nuclear weapon,” later adding in his address that he has a choice to make between “rebuilding the country” or “annihilating the Islamic Republic.”
Trump has previously threatened to attack Iran, posting on TruthSocial “the entire civilization will die tonight.”
Only later in the day to agree on a short-term ceasefire with Tehran.
Trump’s Rhetoric comes as a growing number of Republicans are moving away from the war. The Republican candidate for Senate thinks the war with the President should come to an end. Adding Trump and Republicans should focus on the economy and lowering the prices for everyday Americans.
Panther NOW spoke with Sam Fernandez secretary of the GOP.
When asked if he takes Trump’s threats to annihilate Iran seriously he said: “In short, the answer to whether I take Trump’s threats seriously is no. I think the issue doesn’t lie with Trump’s approach to Iran, but rather with the results of this new generation of warfare. By all metrics, we’ve achieved a form of military victory however, and this is just my opinion, we are looking for that political victory.”
Fernandez was asked if he thinks the war will affect the Governor’s race in Florida. He said “domestically, rising prices have been affecting Trump’s numbers. It is undeniable. However, there is something to be said about differences in temperance between Trump supporters and the broader conservative. War has historically been, to put it lightly, controversial. Whether it will affect Byron Donalds’s numbers, it will be up to the voter to understand that the Florida governor is not the Commander-in-Chief”
Panther Now also asked Fernandez about Republican candidate for governor Byron Donalds removing mentions of Donald Trump from his campaign website, after previously being a staunch supporter of the President and once considered a VP contender. “It is the age-old question of foreign versus domestic policy: give too much to one and American hegemony starts faltering, but give too little and prices rise. The role of the governor is largely domestic. The president has been focused on foreign policy. I would recommend taking a scroll through the Council on Foreign Relations. Overall, this is to say that this isn’t a larger schism in the party. More like a slow acceptance of the end of the Trump era, foreign versus domestic focus, and the broader geopolitical chess game. The United States does not exist in a vacuum. Domestic politics does not exist in a vacuum.”
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