Transcript: Sen. Tim Kaine on “Face the Country with Margaret Brennan,” June 22, 2025 by way of NewsFlicks

The next is the transcript of an interview with Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia that aired on “Face the Country with Margaret Brennan” on June 22, 2025.

MARGARET BRENNAN: We move now to the Democratic Senator Tim Kaine, who joins us from Richmond, Virginia. Excellent morning to you, Senator.

SENATOR TIM KAINE: Excellent morning, Margaret. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: I do know you sit down at the Armed Services and products Committee and the International Family members Committee, however what we simply heard from the Pentagon used to be that Congress used to be notified after the strike on Iran used to be concluded, after the USA jets are back- in protection. Is that this enough?

SEN. KAINE: Margaret, no. Congress must authorize a struggle in opposition to Iran. This Trump struggle in opposition to Iran, we’ve got now not. Congress will have to be consulted with it. We weren’t. And, Congress must be notified, now not after the reality, however upfront. We weren’t. That is why I filed a Warfare Powers Answer that may ripen and be dropped at a vote at the flooring of the Senate this week. Senator Schumer is operating with Chief Thune to make that occur. The US will have to now not be in an offensive struggle in opposition to Iran and not using a vote of Congress. The Charter is totally transparent on it. And I’m so disenchanted that the President has acted so in advance. The International Minister of Israel mentioned Friday evening that its personal bombing marketing campaign had set the Iranian nuclear program again, “no less than two or 3 years.” There used to be no urgency that prompt, whilst diplomatic talks had been underway, that the USA will have to take this unilateral motion by way of President Trump’s orders the day gone by. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Smartly, the Vice President used to be on any other community previous this morning, and mentioned, “We aren’t at struggle with Iran. We’re at struggle with Iran’s nuclear program.” There appears to be a large number of felony parsing at the definition of the phrase struggle right here. What do you are making of that description?

SEN. KAINE: I feel it is, it is BS, and I feel anyone listening to it could conclude the similar factor. When- if you find yourself bombing any other country, ask them if they suspect it is struggle. They do, would we predict it used to be struggle if Iran bombed a US nuclear facility? After all we’d. And the USA, you recognize, now we have invaded two neighbors of Iran, Afghanistan and Iraq, to topple their regimes since 2000. The ones had been wars. That is the USA leaping right into a struggle of selection at Donald Trump’s urging, with none compelling nationwide safety pursuits for the US to behave on this manner, specifically and not using a debate and vote in Congress. We will have to now not be sending troops, and risking troops’ lives in an offensive struggle and not using a debate in Congress. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Smartly, simply at the information, despite the fact that, the President has now not approved flooring forces. Actually, he mentioned he in point of fact does not need to ship in flooring forces. When it got here to what used to be simply described to the general public by way of the Pentagon, it used to be in point of fact characterised as restricted in scope. It sounds such as you consider the ones early hour descriptions are going to transform false.

SEN. KAINE: I do. The- the Warfare Powers solution says {that a} member of Congress can problem the President, if the President initiates hostilities in opposition to a overseas country. Does not use the- even supposing the name is Warfare Powers solution, the statute says in the event you begin hostilities with out congressional authorization, even a unmarried member of the Area or Senate can drive a vote at the Senate flooring. There’s no doubt that the USA sending this large set of Tomahawk missiles and B-2 bombers and bunker busters on 3 Iranian nuclear websites is hostilities. Now, once more, some within the Senate would possibly say that is nice and we need to vote for it. I occur to suppose that obtaining into a 3rd offensive struggle within the Heart East within the final 25 years is de facto reckless and silly, and I’ll be doing the entirety I will be able to to persuade my colleagues of that I would possibly or would possibly not prevail, however Congress will have to have the controversy and vote in this ahead of we escalate the chance to American troops, which this motion has completed. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: We all know that previous to this motion, Northern Command had already directed further security features on all U.S. army installations. You have got a large number of army installations in Virginia. What have you learnt concerning the danger to the native land at this level?

SEN. TIM KAINE: We are going to have a briefing Tuesday, Margaret, and I will be informed extra then, however what I know, I even have a large number of Virginians deployed within the Heart East. There are about 40,000 U.S. troops deployed in every single place the Heart East, sailors on Army ships within the Mediterranean and the Pink Sea, other people in land bases in Syria and Iraq, and sure, this motion dramatically raises the chance to them. And the query is, for what? If the Iranian nuclear program – Vice President Vance says it is a struggle in opposition to their nuclear program. After all, we had curtailed that diplomatically a couple of years in the past till Donald Trump tore up the diplomatic deal. That even though you had to salary struggle, when the Israeli International Minister is announcing now we have set the nuclear program again no less than two or 3 years, why release this strike escalating chance to American citizens and American troops over the weekend with out a actual dialogue with Congress? No actual debate ahead of the American public? I do not need to be lied into any other struggle in the best way we had been with Iraq in 2002.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Governor DeSantis of Florida used to be greeting passengers in his state who had boarded a Florida chartered flight from Israel to his state evacuating American citizens. It used to be on Saturday that the U.S. ambassador first made public one of the main points for American citizens on easy methods to get abroad in the event that they sought after to. The airspace is closed. What have you learnt in that overseas family members capability concerning the safety of our team of workers in diplomatic posts, but additionally American citizens who simply need to get house and get again to protection?

SEN. KAINE: We wish to do the entirety we will, Margaret, to facilitate American citizens in need of to go back house from any place within the area. From Israel, the place you recognize those those assaults from Iran pose severe chance to civilian lives, different international locations within the area who really feel in peril, we will have to do the entirety conceivable to convey them again. And I do suspect that the briefing that all of the Senate goes to get Tuesday isn’t just going to be concerning the army aspect of this, however how we’re protective our team of workers within the area. President Trump began to voluntarily take away some U.S. team of workers, State Division, USAID and different companies from the area a few weeks in the past. No longer a compulsory evacuation, however the tempo of voluntary departures used to be used to be choosing up as a result of lets see that President Trump used to be merging nearer and nearer and nearer to violating what he instructed the American public and coming into any other struggle within the Heart East. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Senator Kaine, thanks for becoming a member of us this morning.