Hundreds of anti-Trump protesters gathered outside the White House on Tuesday evening as President Donald Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran, holding off on his threat to bomb the Gulf nation’s civilian infrastructure if Iranian leaders did not open up one of the world’s largest oil passageways.
“I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks. This will be a double sided CEASEFIRE!” the president announced a little more than an hour before a deadline he gave Iran to open up the Strait of Hormuz or face “hell.”
The Strait blockade has driven up gas and energy prices in the U.S., causing a political nightmare for Trump as his party staves off major losses in this year’s midterm elections. In exchange for the waterway’s opening and a temporary ceasefire, which has blocked oil vessels from passing through for weeks, the president agreed to negotiate a 10-point proposal from Iran.
Though the retreat from Trump’s threat to bomb Iran was welcomed for the sake of civilians, critics of the president said more needs to be done to ensure peace in the Middle East and rebuked Trump for starting the “war of choice” in the first place.
Victor LaGroon, a former U.S. Army intelligence analyst and national security expert, told theGrio that details remain unclear regarding Iran’s 10-point plan and “what the U.S. achieved in this agreement.”
“I, like every American, believe that peace is a good thing, but, given the number of times this administration has moved the goal post of what success looks like, I fear this war will continue to cost us billions of dollars and possibly American lives,” said LaGroon.
“This administration has put such little effort into even preparing the public opinion ahead of launching this attack. It didn’t even bother to communicate a set of goals at the onset,” said Cam White, a member of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), who delivered remarks at Tuesday’s rally just feet away from the White House. “Trump didn’t even feel it was necessary to explain to the public why he was initiating this conflict.”
While Trump has repeatedly claimed that Iran was prepared to attack the U.S. and Israel with nuclear weapons, many remain skeptical, considering that last summer, the president also claimed to have “obliterated” the Islamic nation’s nuclear capabilities.
“There is no threat to the U.S. public from Iran, and there never has been,” said White. “Iran has never initiated the war. We know who initiated the war. It was the United States that initiated this war.”
He added, “It is clear, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that this war is fought for nothing other than Trump’s twisted desire to run the whole world.”
Rather than claim victory over the ceasefire deal between the U.S. and Iran, protesters in Washington, D.C., described an authoritarian and imperialist regime led by President Trump, who they say is unfit for office. Many expressed outrage over Trump’s initial threat to kill innocent civilians. Others also advocated against Israel’s continued killing of Palestinians in Gaza.
Zaid Khatib, a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement, who also attended Tuesday’s protest, said the temporary ceasefire was a “sign of U.S. imperialist failure” and the “failure to break the spirit of the Iranian people.” He added, “Let Iran be the graveyard of Trump’s ambitions.”
Protesters held up signs at Tuesday’s rally with messages like “Hands Off Iran,” “No Wars of Choice,” and “25th Amendment Now,” referring to growing calls in Congress for Trump to be removed under the 25th Amendment.
A woman standing outside a gate erected by Secret Service, blocking protesters from entering Lafayette Square and getting close to the White House, held up a sign reading “Demons Out!” and repeatedly chanted the phrase, leading others in “Trump Out Now!” chants.
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Trump’s announced ceasefire “changes nothing,” writing on X, “The President has threatened a genocide against the Iranian people, and is continuing to leverage that threat. He has launched a massive war of enormous risk and of catastrophic consequence without reason, rationale, nor Congressional authorization – which is as clear a violation of the Constitution as any.”
U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost similarly responded, “A last-minute ceasefire doesn’t erase President Trump’s reckless decisions that got us here. We should’ve never been in this illegal war. Trump is a dangerous warmonger who pushed us into this crisis and threatened to commit war crimes.”
More than 70 Democrats are now calling for Trump to be removed from office through the 25th Amendment and are urging a wars power vote in Congress to end the president’s unilateral military operations.
However, Khatib said conversations about removing Trump from office are “very important,” however, he emphasized, “Trump is only a face to an entire system.”
He explained, “Trump only unmasks what has always been the case…because the U.S. has been at war with Iran for over four decades. It’s been a war with the Palestinian people for over seven decades. It’s been at war with Venezuela, with Cuba, with every country, every group of people that stands up against U.S. imperialism, and it does not matter if it’s a Republican or Democrat in office.”
