Buttigieg: Seems Like ‘People at Mar-a-Lago’ Had More Briefing on Soleimani Strike Than Congress

Former South Bend mayor and 2020 Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg slammed President Donald Trump for authorizing the U.S.’ lethal attack on Qasem Soleimani without consulting Congress first.

In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, Buttigieg said that Soleimani “was a bad figure, he has American blood on his hands, and none of us should shed a tear for his death.” He also said, however, that “the president has failed to demonstrate” it was strategically correct to eliminate Soleimani, and “we need answers on how this decision was reached.”

As the interview continued to touch on the intelligence reports on Iran and whether Buttigieg would’ve authorized the strike, the former mayor was asked if he agrees with fellow Democrats who called the Soleimani strike an “assassination.”

Buttigieg answered that he was more interested in the consequences than the terminology, then he blasted Trump by referring to reports suggesting that the president gave people at his Mar-a-Lago club a hint as to what was coming for Iran.

“It seems like more people at Mar-a-Lago heard about this than people in the United States Congress who are a co-equal branch of government with the responsibility to consult,” Buttigieg said. “The real world effects of this are going to go far beyond what we are debating today and we need answers quickly.”

Watch above, via CNN.

Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com