Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) took to X on Monday, July 20, 2026, to mourn the latest American service members killed in the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict and to renew his demand that Congress cut off all further funding for what he has repeatedly called an illegal war launched without congressional authorization.
Posting at 10:41 a.m., Markey wrote: “These brave troops gave their lives in service to our nation. How many more must die for Trump’s war of choice? End Trump’s illegal Iran war now. Not another nickel.” The post, shared alongside a link to a New York Times report on the rising American death toll, marks the latest in a monthslong string of statements in which Markey has accused President Trump of dragging the country into an unauthorized and escalating conflict with Iran.
Death Toll Climbs to 17
Markey’s post came as the U.S. military death toll in the Iran conflict rose to 17 over the weekend of July 18-20. According to reporting from The New York Times, a U.S. service member was killed Saturday while disposing of an Iranian drone in northern Iraq, and two U.S. Army soldiers were killed a day earlier in Jordan when Iranian ballistic missiles struck a military base, penetrating American and Jordanian air defenses. President Trump has said he intends to avenge any American military deaths in the conflict, and U.S. Central Command confirmed a new round of strikes on Iran was launched early Sunday.
The Times reported that Iran has recently varied its attack methods against U.S. personnel in the region, combining medium-range ballistic missiles with one-way attack drones in an apparent effort to overwhelm American air defense systems. More than 400 U.S. service members have been injured in the conflict since fighting began, according to Central Command figures cited by the Times.
A Pattern of Opposition Dating to the War’s Start
Markey’s Monday statement is consistent with a position he has held since the earliest days of the conflict. On February 28, 2026, the day the United States struck Iran, Markey released a statement calling the strikes “illegal and unconstitutional,” saying they were carried out “without Congressional approval” and warning that the action “raise[d] the threat of escalation into a wider regional war with grave risks for U.S. troops and civilians in the region.” He argued at the time that “a diplomatic solution remains the best way to permanently and verifiably prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon” and said Congress needed to act if Trump would not end the war himself.
Repeated War Powers Votes
Markey has since voted for a series of War Powers Resolutions aimed at ending the conflict, each of which has failed in the Senate. On March 4, 2026, after a resolution failed 47-53, Markey said “Donald Trump is conducting an illegal and reckless war in Iran” and argued that Trump had offered shifting and unsubstantiated justifications for the strikes, saying “it is clear he had no plan at the start of this war.”
Two weeks later, on March 18, following another failed 47-53 vote, Markey said he had “just left the Senate floor” after voting to end what he described as Trump’s “illegal war with Iran,” adding that “Trump’s chaos abroad is costing us here at home” as gas prices rose.
On March 24, after a third resolution failed 47-53, Markey noted that thirteen U.S. service members had died in the war by that point and gasoline prices had climbed 35 percent, warning that “this war is an ever-expanding quagmire with no clear exit that is only making us less safe.”
Escalating Rhetoric Toward Trump and Netanyahu
By April, Markey’s statements had grown sharper. On April 7, he called for Congress to remove Trump from office after the president threatened that “a whole civilization will die” if Iran did not reach a deal to end the war. On April 15, after a fourth War Powers Resolution failed 47-52, Markey said the war was “a moral tragedy and economic disaster” and cited reports of more than 100 Iranian schoolgirls killed by American weapons alongside 13 American service members killed and hundreds injured, calling Trump’s threats “an abdication of moral leadership on the global stage.”
That same day, Markey also voted for joint resolutions of disapproval on arms sales to Israel introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders, saying a vote to approve the sales “would be seen as a message of approval for Trump and Netanyahu’s disastrous war against Iran.” Both resolutions failed.
“Not One More Penny”
Markey first articulated the funding cutoff position now central to his Monday post on April 22, 2026, after a fifth War Powers Resolution failed 46-51. He said Trump’s war had “empowered Iran to weaponize the Strait of Hormuz—which Iran now controls” and declared, “I will not vote for one more penny to fund this illegal war, and we must find a diplomatic solution to end this catastrophe immediately.”
Pushing to Slash Pentagon Spending
Markey has also sought to translate his opposition into legislative action targeting military spending broadly. On June 16, 2026, he introduced the Slash the Pentagon Act, legislation that would cap the Department of Defense budget at $750 billion — half of the $1.5 trillion request he says Trump is pursuing. Markey argued that Americans are struggling to afford “healthcare, rent, electricity, groceries, and gas” while Trump has spent more than $100 billion on the Iran war, saying Republicans want to “pad the pockets of gold-plated defense contractors with billions more dollars for weapons and wars we do not need.”
Isolated Among Senate Democrats
Markey’s funding cutoff stance has not been universally embraced within his own party. Asked by ABC News whether he agreed with Markey’s call to cut off all war funding, Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) declined to endorse the position, saying only that troops remain in the region and urging Trump to “come to Congress” and make his case to the public. Senator John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who has voted against limiting Trump’s war powers, said he believes it is “entirely appropriate to continue to confront Iran.”
Continued Pressure Amid Rising Casualties
Monday’s post reflects the same core arguments Markey has advanced since February — that the war lacks congressional authorization, that its human and financial costs continue to climb, and that funding should be cut off entirely. With the U.S. death toll now at 17 and injuries exceeding 400 according to Central Command, Markey’s renewed call to “end Trump’s illegal Iran war now” places continued pressure on the administration and on fellow senators as the conflict extends into its fifth month.