Rep. Mike Levin said Wednesday that President Donald Trump and Republican leaders are spending billions of tax dollars on military operations against Iran that “Congress never authorized,” while also expanding what he called Stephen Miller’s mass deportation agenda and funding the president’s “own vanity projects,” urging voters to “put an end to it” in the Nov. 3 midterm elections six days away.
In a post on X, the California Democrat wrote: “Daily reminder that Trump and Republican leadership are spending billions of your tax dollars on military operations against Iran that Congress never authorized, expanding Stephen Miller’s mass deportation agenda, and funding the president’s own vanity projects, while doing nothing to lower your grocery bill or make your life more affordable. In 6 days, you can help put an end to it.”
Levin has opposed the Iran campaign as unauthorized since it began. On March 5, he voted for H. Con. Res. 38, a war powers resolution directing the president to remove U.S. forces from hostilities against Iran absent a declaration of war or specific authorization from Congress. The House rejected the measure in a 212-219 vote, with two Republicans joining most Democrats in support and four Democrats voting against it. In a statement that day, Levin said Trump launched “major combat operations” on Feb. 28 “without a declaration of war, without an authorization from Congress, and without a coherent explanation to the American people,” quoting Trump’s own description of the operation as “massive and ongoing.”
The war’s cost has grown since that vote. The Defense Department told Congress that U.S. military costs had reached about $47.1 billion as of Oct. 16, up from $43.6 billion through Sept. 3, Stars and Stripes reported. The estimate includes about $29 billion to replace munitions, $6.1 billion to replace lost equipment and about $11.9 billion in operating costs, and it excludes damage to U.S. bases still being assessed. Stars and Stripes also reported that the Pentagon is seeking roughly $67 billion in related supplemental funding while Congress is in recess ahead of the midterms.
Major U.S. strikes have been paused, and the White House has said they will not resume before the election. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News that “The United States will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the midterm elections,” while a White House official said Trump “keeps all options on the table.” At a rally in Lubbock, Texas, on Tuesday, Trump said the war could end “whenever I want it to end.”
On deportations, Levin has pressed Immigration and Customs Enforcement for local figures. In a May 6 office statement, he released an ICE letter to the San Diego congressional delegation saying removals in the agency’s San Diego Area of Responsibility totaled 16,368 between Jan. 20, 2025, and April 1, 2026, led by nationals of Mexico (10,847), Guatemala (996) and Venezuela (544). ICE did not provide the criminal-record breakdown Levin had requested. “I suspect these high numbers are part of Stephen Miller’s demands to meet high detention quotas,” Levin said at the time. “What this letter does not answer is how many detainees and removals had a criminal record.” Reps. Scott Peters, Sara Jacobs and Juan Vargas raised similar transparency concerns in the same release. Miller is the White House deputy chief of staff for policy and a chief architect of Trump’s immigration agenda; the ICE letter does not attribute the San Diego totals to any quota set by him.
On the “vanity projects” point, the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, reported on Oct. 23 that the administration has spent or plans to spend at least $1.6 billion in taxpayer money on projects the group says promote Trump’s personal image. Its list includes retrofitting a jet gifted by Qatar for use as Air Force One, White House decorations and statues, banners, promotional advertising, a monument and a new White House ballroom. The group said it used conservative estimates of public spending and that a separate report puts related costs at about $1.8 billion when private spending is included. The White House has said the ballroom is being paid for by private donors.
On grocery prices, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that in the 12 months through September, the index for food at home rose 1.8 percent, food away from home rose 3.5 percent and overall consumer prices rose 3.7 percent. Energy drove much of the increase, with gasoline up 9.1 percent in September alone and 34.2 percent over the year. Grocery prices are rising more slowly than overall inflation, while fuel and restaurant prices are rising faster.
Levin represents California’s 49th District, which includes Camp Pendleton and coastal communities in San Diego and Orange counties, and is seeking re-election on Nov. 3.
The phrases “Stephen Miller’s mass deportation agenda,” “the president’s own vanity projects” and “doing nothing to lower your grocery bill” are Levin’s characterizations. Congress has not authorized the Iran war, and the House rejected the war powers resolution Levin backed in March. The Pentagon’s latest estimate puts the war’s cost at about $47.1 billion. ICE confirmed 16,368 removals in the San Diego area but gave no criminal-record breakdown and did not tie the figures to any quota. The $1.6 billion figure for “vanity projects” comes from a liberal think tank, not a government budget category. Federal data show grocery prices up 1.8 percent over the past year and gasoline up more than 34 percent.