For more than two months, the world has been thrown into a political and economic frenzy over the US military’s joint attack with Israel on Iran, spearheaded by President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Since then, the world has entered one of the worst economic and political frenzies in years, as the Strait of Hormuz has been closed and worldwide oil shipments have stalled as countries run out of fuel.
The war has met extreme scrutiny within the United States, with a 61% disapproval rating amongst Americans, according to the Pew Research Center. The war has also caused many of Trump’s allies in the government, as well as his civilian followers, to turn against him.
Although many believe a regime change in Iran is a good thing, as the Iranian Ayatollah,who was killed in an airstrike on February 28, and his extremist Islamic Republic was notorious for many crimes against his people as well as the suppression and stripping of their rights. However, the common consensus amongst Americans remains that this war is not worth the cost of worldwide economic strife and a risk to world peace.
Even though the war is very risky and detrimental to the world, President Trump has still not given a clear reason as to why the war is happening. Reports state that many of his closest members in the White House tried to convince him not to embark on this military campaign, but he chose to anyway.
The Mountaineer interviewed Montclair High School students to try to capture what people think Trump’s reasoning for the war is.
“I think Trump is waging war in Iran because he’s stubborn and and I think he wants more money, but I don’t think he knows what he’s doing either,” said Wyatt Wassermann, a ninth-grader at MHS.
“I don’t think there’s peace in the near future because he’s too dumb,” Wassermann said.
Ninth-grader Benjamin Fortt also expressed disgust with Trump’s back peddling on campaign promises.
“The administration has doubled down on aggressive economic sanctions. By targeting Iran’s oil exports and financial sectors, the U.S. aims to cripple the Iranian economy to force a renegotiation of their nuclear program and a cessation of their support for regional proxy groups [Such as Hamas and the Houthis].”
“Donald Trump lied on his promises,” Fortt said. “He did not come through with a multitude of his promises. And therefore, we should be reconsidering our thoughts as an American people.”
Although he is not as concerned about international escalation, Fortt said he believes that something must be done to stop Trump and what he is doing.
“This won’t escalate to World War III. I do see an end in sight. But to Trump’s reign of terror,” Fortt continued.“I don’t see it, an ending site. Yeah, we’re gonna have to do something about it as an American people.”
Zoe Cohen also expressed frustration with the decision to strike militarily in Iran.
“President Trump is an idiot, and he’s trying to do anything. It’s basically a diversion from everything else in this country right now and another one of his idiotic plans,” Cohen said.
Although all of the students who were asked believe differently as to why President Trump might be waging this war, none believe in the validity of the conflict.
