Just over a week after the Trump administration launched military strikes in Iran, the war has already taken a deadly human toll, destabilized energy markets, and is already raising costs for American families. At the same time, the administration has yet to articulate a clear strategy for a conflict with far-reaching consequences. The latest Center for American Progress analysis examines the strategic, economic, and human costs of the escalating war in Iran.
The Case Against Trump’s War of Choice in Iran
The Trump administration’s strikes on Iran have pulled the United States into a war of choice that carries enormous risks for Americans and for stability in the Middle East. The conflict has already taken lives, including U.S. service members and more than 1,000 Iranian civilians, and raises the prospect of a wider regional escalation. Some lawmakers now estimate that military operations could cost up to $2 billion per day. At that cost, a single day of operations could cover hundreds of thousands of Americans on Medicaid for a year. Rather than deterring nuclear ambitions, military action could strengthen incentives for Iran to pursue nuclear weapons. The decision to launch the strikes without congressional authorization also bypasses the constitutional role of Congress in decisions of war and peace.
The War in Iran Will Raise Fuel Prices and Costs Throughout the Economy
The war in Iran is already raising prices across the U.S. economy. With shipping through the Strait of Hormuz effectively halted, roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supply has been removed from the market, spiking fuel prices throughout the world. In just the first week after the bombing of Iran, the national average price of gasoline increased 48 cents per gallon. Higher oil and gas prices ripple through the economy—raising electricity costs, fertilizer prices, and grocery bills. As long as the war continues, American households will pay more at the pump, on their utility bills, and at the grocery store.
Congress may soon face requests for tens of billions of dollars in additional funding to sustain the war in Iran. The Trump administration may argue that supplemental funding is needed to replenish stockpiles, but the “Big Beautiful Bill” provided an additional $153 billion for defense just eight months ago, on top of the annual defense budget of around $900 billion. Rather than continuing to fund unnecessary and unpopular military operations, the best way to keep American service members and civilians in the region safe is for Trump to end the war.
This tax policy change could help build 1 million new rental homes
Photo: Getty Images
For decades, the United States has not been building enough housing.
Experts believe the United States is short 2 million to 5 million homes. This shortage has skyrocketed housing costs—leaving millions of Americans struggling financially and limiting their choice of where to live, work, and raise families.
As the cost of living continues to be the top priority for most Americans, Congress has an opportunity to deliver a real solution. Our new research shows that a simple federal tax policy change could quickly and efficiently spark the construction of up to 1.1 million new apartments over the next decade.
ICYMI: The Washington, D.C., premiere of ‘Among Neighbors’
As part of CAP’s Reel Progress film series program, we recently hosted the Washington, D.C., premiere of the award-winning film, “Among Neighbors.”
At its heart, the film focuses on two individuals who lived through the peril of World War II and its aftermath: Yaacov Goldstein, a Holocaust survivor whose harrowing story exposes both the heights of human compassion and the depths of cruelty, and Pelagia Radecka, an eyewitness to when five Jews were murdered—not by the Nazis but by her own Polish neighbors—six months after the end of World War II.
The screening was followed by a conversation and audience Q&A with the film's director, writer, and producer, Yoav Potash.
