Democrats Call the Iran War a “Forever War.” Ukraine Is the Real One.
FEATUREDNEWS
10/19/20264 min read
Why it matters: Democrats are campaigning on ending a "forever war" in Iran, while the war they still champion fits the definition better and is costing Americans more.
By definition: A forever war is a lasting state of war with no clear conditions that would lead to its conclusion. For Americans, the term means Iraq and Afghanistan: nearly nine years and 20 years of fighting, with no clear point at which either war would be won.
Count 1: Ukraine is a forever war.
Stalemate: The front stretches more than 700 miles and has barely moved in four years.
No end condition: Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on House Appropriations, put it in the Congressional Record: "Only Ukraine can decide when it is done fighting—no one else." She pledged U.S. support for as long as it takes. If that sounds familiar, it's because it was Biden's policy. In 2022 he told Zelenskyy, "We will stay with you for as long as it takes."
Count 2: Americans don't fight it, but they pay for it.
$174 billion: What Congress has appropriated for the Ukraine response since 2022, passed as emergency spending that adds to the deficit. The Pentagon puts the Iran war at $43.6 billion through Sept. 3, about one-quarter as much.
At the pump: Record diesel prices came after Ukraine took Russia's diesel off the market. Before Russia's July 8 export ban, more than four months into the Iran war, diesel was about 20% above where it stood before the Iran war began. By the end of September, wholesale diesel had more than doubled for the year, and retail diesel hit its all-time record the week of Sept. 21.
The refineries: The IEA says Russia's diesel output has fallen about 30% after Ukraine's refinery strikes. Before the strikes, Russia was the world's No. 2 diesel exporter.
Count 3: It's not even close. The Iran war is ending.
Iran doesn't control the strait: It can harass ships, but it can't stop them. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) says 400 ships and 100 million barrels of oil moved through Hormuz last week. Independent tracker Kpler counted about 11.6 million barrels a day over the week ending Oct. 13, which is roughly consistent with CENTCOM's figure. So who should Americans believe: the IRGC or the U.S. military commander in the region?
Iran is asking for terms, and its terms show why: Iran's army says Hormuz will reopen if American forces leave the Middle East. And as of this weekend, a leader of Iran's parliament is calling for Tehran to build a bomb and test it, and is predicting the new supreme leader will drop his father's ban on nuclear weapons.
The blockade is working: CNN reports Iran's economy is in tatters, and CENTCOM says the blockade has cost Iran $25 billion in oil income.
Prices are falling: Diesel hit a record $6.53 the week of Sept. 21 and has dropped in each weekly reading since, to $6.18. The EIA projects average diesel prices will be lower next year than this year.
Their own words:
On Iran, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said Americans "want lower costs, not more forever wars."
On Ukraine, the same Kaine said: "I'm disgusted by the Trump Administration's refusal to hold Putin accountable."
The other side: Democrats call the Iran war illegal because Congress never authorized it. But Trump notified Congress within two days, as the law requires. The irony is that the War Powers Act Democrats keep citing is the law that gave the Trump administration its legal window to launch Operation Epic Fury: 60 days of operations, plus 30 more to withdraw.
The bottom line: After a three-day pause for Trump's energy ceasefire, Zelenskyy said: "The block is out. We're done." Hours later, Ukrainian drones hit Russia's Ryazan refinery. Meanwhile, Iran's IRGC published a 25-page letter urging Americans to vote against Trump and Republicans.
Democrats are asking you to end the war that's being won and keep paying for the one with no plan to win.
THE FAITH CHECK: Scripture says God hates a rigged scale, where one weight is used for your friends and another for your opponents (Proverbs 20:23). "Forever war" is a measure. If it condemns a war that's nearly over, it has to condemn one that only ends whenever Ukraine decides it's done. Jesus warned that the measure we use is the measure used on us (Matthew 7:2). Christians don't have to adopt a party's scale. We just have to use the same one every time.
You should probably know: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Meet the Press that Europe has paid Russia more for energy than it has given Ukraine. On Ukraine's request for air defense, he said European NATO members "have plenty of Patriots." On diesel, the G7 agreed to an emergency release only after Trump warned some European countries he would ban U.S. diesel exports. The discerning Christian should be asking why we aren't furious with Europe. Do they want us to keep paying for their forever war?
Original reporting by CNBC.
Watch: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Meet the Press (Oct. 18) on Europe’s Russian energy payments, Patriot missiles, and who’s really paying for Ukraine’s war.
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