Today, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries appeared on CNN Newsroom, where he highlighted how Donald’s Trump has failed to articulate a reason for his unconstitutional war of choice in Iran and continues to do nothing to make life better for everyday Americans.

JESSICA DEAN: We’re joined now by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Leader Jeffries, thank you so much for being here with us today. I really appreciate it. We just got the latest reporting there out of Israel from our colleague Nick Paton Walsh. I know you have taken issue with the process by which the Trump administration is going about this war, but the administration, the President, their allies continue to say that this war will make America stronger and its allies safer and stronger in the long run. Do you think they’re wrong about that?

LEADER JEFFRIES: I think they’re definitely wrong, but at minimum they have not made the case to the American people. So it’s less about process and more about substance in terms of what is the justification for this? What is the strategy to be successful? And what is the end game, in an environment where everyday Americans right now are struggling to live paycheck to paycheck? Millions of people can’t thrive and can barely survive given the high cost of living that exists in this country. Donald Trump promised to lower costs on day one. He hasn’t done that. In fact, costs have gone up. And our view is that taxpayer dollars at this moment in time should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, to lower grocery prices and housing costs and healthcare costs. Instead, Donald Trump is spending billions of dollars to drop bombs in another war in the Middle East with no evidence that at the end of the day, it’s actually going to make the American people safer.

JESSICA DEAN: You know, he campaigned on America First and some Republicans like Marjorie Taylor Greene have said this is America last. Do you think this is America last?

LEADER JEFFRIES: I think that Donald Trump has consistently not put the interests of the American people first, as he promised. In fact, Candidate Trump said that he was not going to involve America in another endless war in the Middle East. President Trump has done the exact opposite. Candidate Trump, of course, talked about lowering costs on day one. President Trump enacted tariffs that have increased costs on everyday Americans by thousands of dollars per year. Candidate Trump said that his immigration enforcement policy would focus on the worst of the worst, go after violent criminals who are here illegally. Instead, what we know is that he’s unleashed ICE engaging in brutality against everyday Americans and American citizens, and in some cases, like the situation with Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, killing them. And so, this is part of a pattern of Candidate Trump promising one thing and then President Trump doing the exact opposite in ways that aren’t designed to actually benefit the American people and in many cases are hurting everyday Americans.

JESSICA DEAN: I want to ask you about the fact that it’s been a week and we still don’t have a clear explanation of that strike on a girls school in Iran that killed at least 168 children. That’s according to Iranian state media. I want to play you what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said about this.

RECORDING OF PETE HEGSETH: All I can say is that we’re investigating that. We, of course, never target civilian targets, but we’re taking a look at investigating that.

RECORDING OF REPORTER: Just on the basis that with the information you would have, your reconnaissance abilities, ability to gather information, I mean it’s several days on now. So is there any clarity on whose munition this was?

RECORDING OF PETE HEGSETH: We’re investigating it.

JESSICA DEAN: Leader Jeffries, is that an acceptable explanation at this point, to the American people, to the world?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Certainly not an acceptable explanation. I’m horrified, saddened, deeply disturbed by both the tragic death of six American patriots, heroes, our men and women in uniform serving the country who have died as a result of Donald Trump’s war of choice, and deeply saddened and disturbed by the death of more than 100 school children who appear to have been struck by the United States military. And I think the American people are owed an explanation. The civilians, Iranian civilians are owed an explanation. The world is owed an explanation. And this is part of why, you know, these decisions of war and peace should actually be taken seriously. And Donald Trump should have made his case to the American people and to Congress on behalf of the folks that we represent as to why this has been done, why this war has been launched, why billions of dollars are being spent overseas in the Middle East as opposed to make life better for the American people. And the administration has completely and totally failed to meet its responsibilities to the public and certainly under the United States Constitution.

JESSICA DEAN: We’re also getting information and reporting that Russia is now aiding Iran with intelligence about locations, movements of US troops. I want to play what the White House Press Secretary said about this.

RECORDING OF KAROLINE LEAVITT: We don’t comment on intelligence reports that are leaked to the press. Whether or not this happened, frankly, it does not really matter.

JESSICA DEAN: So she said it does not really matter. She then had a clarification. This was the clarification.

RECORDING OF KRISTEN HOLMES: You just said on Fox that it doesn’t really matter if Russia is giving Iran information about military assets. Why doesn’t it matter if U.S. Military is being put in danger by Russia and is that what the President believes as well?

RECORDING OF KAROLINE LEAVITT: What I meant, Kristen, and thank you for giving me a chance to make it very clear, is that it clearly is not making a difference with respect to the military operations in Iran, because we are completely decimating them.

JESSICA DEAN: So if Russia’s giving intelligence to Iran to strike US military, our men and women, our bases, et cetera, doesn’t doesn’t matter in her words, and the President really dismissed this as well. Do you do you agree with that? What action should the US be taking now knowing this?

LEADER JEFFRIES: Well, it’s very callous in terms of her observations, and we’ve seen that. Even the notion that we shouldn’t be concerned about the deaths of those service members and that these things are to be expected in theaters of war, which some members of the administration have seemed to suggest, it’s all highly problematic in terms of just the brazenness of this Trump administration in both getting us into this war after promising not to entangle the country in endless conflict in the Middle East, and then failing to really articulate any prospective strategy about how we are actually successful, what that should look like in terms of how the American people can see a favorable resolution to this conflict, and then how does it all end? And this is just, you know, part of both the arrogance and the incompetence, that’s a dangerous combination. But this is an arrogant administration and it’s an incompetent one at the same period of time and this is just the latest example of it.

JESSICA DEAN: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, we really appreciate your time this afternoon. Thank you very much.

LEADER JEFFRIES: Thank you. 

Full interview can be watched here.