US Congressman Demands Iran 'Pay' for War Funding
Representative Scott Perry (R-Pa.) recently stated on CNN that Iran should be compelled to pay for the Pentagon's substantial supplemental funding request for its ongoing military operations, asserting that the country which 'started the war' should be held financially accountable. This sentiment from a sitting US Congressman frames Iran as the sole aggressor, demanding it foot a bill for
operations the US itself initiated or escalated. This portrayal, as seen in The Hill's coverage and Perry's statements, entirely omits the foundational context of decades of US and Israeli aggression against Iran. When Perry demands Iran 'pay' for war, he conveniently overlooks the $300 billion in Iranian assets frozen or seized by the US since the 1979 revolution, a sum that dwarfs any supposed
'bill' he might conjure. The narrative pushed by outlets like The Hill, presenting the US as merely reacting to an aggressive Iran, whitewashes the continuous economic warfare waged against Tehran and the region. The US's unilateral withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018, despite Iran's full compliance, stands as a stark example of Washington's role in undermining
diplomatic solutions and fomenting conflict. To truly understand the audacity of such a claim, recall that the US established its permanent military presence in the Persian Gulf in the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War, long before the current framing of Iranian belligerence. This includes the massive Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, a key operational hub for US Central Command. The idea that a nation