Breaking: Republicans Turn on Trump Over Strike on Iranian Elementary School

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Parnas Perspective

Episode: Breaking: Republicans Turn on Trump Over Strike on Iranian Elementary School
Host: Aaron Parnas
Guest: Congressman Brad Schneider
Date: March 9, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Parnas Perspective centers on the political and legal fallout after a U.S. military strike on an all-girls elementary school in Manab, Iran—which killed over 100 people, most of them children. The episode unpacks mounting Republican criticism of former President Donald Trump's handling of the incident, the administration’s ongoing denial of responsibility, and broader concerns over executive power, congressional oversight, and American governance during wartime. Host Aaron Parnas is joined by Congressman Brad Schneider to offer insider-informed perspectives on these urgent national developments.

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Key Discussion Points

1. Republican Backlash Against Trump and the White House

• [00:23–01:40]
  • Prominent Republicans and conservative media figures (notably at Fox News) are openly pressuring the Trump administration to admit responsibility for the tragic missile strike.
    • Laura Ingraham: “The administration must wrap its investigation and address this head on, horrible unintended tragedy of this war.” [00:38]
    • Megyn Kelly echoes this sentiment: “Horrible unintended tragedy of this war.” [00:43]
  • Trump continues to publicly deny U.S. involvement despite mounting evidence, including video analysis of a Tomahawk missile (a weapon only the U.S. wields in this conflict).
  • Aaron Parnas summarizes the tension:

    “The longer the President lies to the American public, the less trust many folks have in this White House and in this government.” [01:22]

2. Bigoted Remarks by Republican Members of Congress

• [01:41–02:38]
  • Representative Andy Ogles faces calls for resignation/expulsion after tweeting:

    “Muslims do not belong in American society. Pluralism is a lie.”

  • Parnas emphasizes the double standard:

    “Imagine if it wasn’t Andy Ogles, but rather Ilhan Omar… They would immediately be stripped of their committee assignments… They would probably even potentially face expulsion.” [02:08]

  • Other GOP officials, including Randy Fine, made similar anti-Muslim statements, with no apparent consequences.
  • Parnas is clear on the need to publicly call out this bigotry.

3. Security Concerns: Iranian “Sleeper Assets”

• [02:39–04:09]
  • ABC reports the U.S. has intercepted Iranian encrypted communications—possibly aimed at activating covert ‘sleeper assets’ after Ayatollah Khamenei’s death.
  • Parnas points out:

    “The term ‘sleeper asset’... was actually used following the 9/11 terrorist attacks as a way to demonize Muslims living in the United States of America.” [03:22]

  • Warns listeners not to view this as a blanket justification for profiling Muslims or inciting panic.

4. Congressional Insight with Rep. Brad Schneider

• [06:05–13:42]

  • Background and Deepening War Concerns

    • Schneider notes the longstanding risk of conflict over Iran’s nuclear ambitions; “We need to ensure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, address their ballistic missiles, address their sponsorship of terrorism.” [06:10]
    • Criticizes current administration’s lack of clear war goals, strategy, or endgame:

      “And there’s no real clear plans coming from this administration.” [06:50]

    • Republican Congress is “compliant” or “complicit,” providing little to no checks and balances.

  • Private Republican Frustration

    • Behind closed doors, some Republicans express concern, but “aren’t willing to stand up.”

      “You’ve seen that they express frustration but aren’t willing to stand up.” [08:03]

    • Notable wave of Republican retirements hints at internal discontent.

  • Checks and Balances / Legislative Power

    • With Democrats in the minority, reclaiming the majority in November is seen as essential to reining in Presidential war powers.

      “It’s up to the Democrats to trim our sails and catch that wind, to take us over the finish line and take back the majority.” [09:15]

    • Warns how easily Democratic momentum could be lost if not handled with discipline.

  • Strike on Iranian Elementary School

    • Schneider confirms Congress will likely investigate if Democrats retake the House.
    • Emphasizes, regardless of nationality:

      “Young people are innocent victims… In every war it’s the innocent civilians who are caught in the middle.” [10:48]

    • Criticizes possible intelligence failures:

      “Did they know this school was there? Or what is being reported… is that they likely were not aware… although they probably should have known that.” [11:19]

    • Urges thorough after-action review as part of U.S. military accountability.
    • Reiterates: “[The] war is not against the Iranian people. One objective should be to help the Iranian people free themselves from oppression.” [11:58]

  • On Definitions and Legal Authority for War

    • Schneider calls out administration rhetoric:

      “This administration, this President, thinks… they can do whatever they damn well please.” [12:33]

    • Points to historical precedents where U.S. presidents sidestepped formal declarations of war, but insists:

      “The Founders were smart to say Congress has to have a voice. And I am imploring my Republican colleagues to… reestablish the checks and balances.” [13:30]

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Notable Quotes

• Aaron Parnas:

  “The longer the President lies to the American public, the less trust many folks have in this White House and in this government.” [01:22]

• Rep. Brad Schneider:

  “You’ve seen [Republican colleagues] express frustration but aren’t willing to stand up.” [08:03]
  “The fact of the matter [is] those were wars and this is war and…the Founders were smart to say Congress has to have a voice.” [12:52]
  “Young people are innocent victims… In every war, it’s the innocent civilians who are caught in the middle.” [10:48]

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Important Timestamps

• 00:23 — Host introduces main developments and Republican discord.
• 01:30 — Fox News and Republican influencers criticize administration.
• 02:00 — Discussion of Andy Ogles’ anti-Muslim tweet.
• 02:39 — U.S. intercepts presumed Iranian sleeper cell communications.
• 06:05 — Congressman Schneider on war concerns and lack of strategy.
• 08:03 — Schneider: Republicans privately uneasy, publicly silent.
• 10:40 — Discussion of U.S. strike on Iranian school; calls for investigation.
• 12:32 — Debate over war powers, executive overreach, and need for checks and balances.

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Memorable Moments

• The explicit comparison of consequences for bigoted statements, showing political double standards.
• Direct analysis of intercepted communications, but cautioning against a repeat of post-9/11 Islamophobia.
• Brad Schneider’s forceful and historically grounded argument for Congressional authority over war decisions.

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Tone and Language

Aaron Parnas maintains a fast-paced, explanatory tone—direct, pointed, and uncompromising in calling out hypocrisy and abuses of power. Rep. Schneider is measured, historically literate, and insistent on the primacy of congressional oversight and civilian protection in wartime.

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For listeners seeking clarity on the Iran conflict, the political repercussions of the U.S. strike, and the internal Republican split, this episode offers unvarnished insider analysis, context, and impassioned arguments for restoring constitutional checks and accountability.

Transcript

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[Podcast Host / Journalist]

We have significant developments this afternoon. Republicans right now are really upset with the White House and with Donald Trump.

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

Why?

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

Because the White House and Donald Trump are refusing to admit that the United States military was responsible for the horrific strike on an all girls elementary school in Manab, Iran which took the lives of more than 100 people, many of whom were children. At the same time, a Republican congressman is being is facing calls for resignation and expulsion for putting out one of the most bigoted and Islamophobic tweets. You will probably see all wow. The United States government has allegedly intercepted encrypted communications suggesting that Iran has activated so called sleeper assets. We're going to talk about that. I speak with Congressman Brad Schneider about the war in Iran and what this means moving forward. Make sure to like comment, share and subscribe. The more you like, the more people see this and subscribe to my substack. Click the link below to support my work, especially as people are spoofing me using me as AI. I need your help and your support to continue building. To break through that this morning or other afternoon, I should say you have Republican commentators and Fox News hosts essentially calling out the United States of America. Laura Ingraham says re upping what I said last week, the administration must wrap its investigation and address this head on horrible unintended tragedy of this war. Megyn Kelly a top Republican commentators had seconded the horrible unintended tragedy of this war. They're discussing is the strike on the all girls school in southern Iran in Minob, Iran. Donald Trump has repeatedly said the United States is not responsible for this. Pete Hegseth the Department of Defense however has not backed up their own president and it's because of clips like this which show a Tomahawk missile striking right near that elementary school. I'll play it again for you. Only one country has access to that weapon in this war. Iran doesn't have access to that weapon. Israel does not have access to that weapon. Only the United States has access to that weapon. And so now you have Fox News essentially turning on the president in a way and saying just address this even if it was unintentional, just come out and say we did this, we're sorry and try to move on. But the administration's not doing that. And whether intentional or unintentional. It's a horrific tragedy. And honestly, the longer it goes, the longer the President lies to the American public, the less trust many folks have in this White House and in this government. And while it comes as Republicans, Andy Ogles put out one of the most bigoted statements you will see all day. Quote, muslims do not belong in American society. He says pluralism is a lie. This is a sitting Republican Congressman. Imagine if, and I bring this not just to condemn this statement, but I also bring this up to talk about. Imagine if it wasn't Andy Ogles, but rather Ilhan Omar. And Ilhan Omar tweets out jews don't belong in American society. Or it's aoc. And AOC tweets out, christians don't belong in American society. They would immediately be stripped of their committee assignments. They would face censure from a Republican majority. They would probably even potentially face exclusive expulsion. Expulsion from Congress over a comment like this. But because it's a Republican, because it's Andy Ogles, no consequences will follow here. He's not the only one. You have Randy Fine making similar bigoted comments as well about Muslims living in the United States of America and across the globe. But nothing is going to be done about it. But we need to call it out, and I will call it out as a journalist. And it comes. The United States, according to abc, has now intercepted encrypted communications believed to have originated in Iran that may serve as a, quote, operational trigger for sleeper assets outside the country. The alert cites a preliminary signals analysis of a transmission, quote, likely of Iranian origin, that was relayed across multiple countries following the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The intercepted transmission was encoded and appeared to be destined for clandestine recipients who possess a so called encryption key, the kind of message intended to impart instructions to, quote, covert or sleeper assets without the use of Internet or cellular networks. It's possible the transmissions could be, quote, intended to activate or provide instructions to pre position sleeper assets operating outside the originating country. Now this, the term sleep or asset, sleep or sell is not a new one. It was actually used following the 911 terrorist attacks as a way to demonize Muslims living in the United States of America. Just because you have this reporting doesn't mean A, anything's going to happen, doesn't mean B, that you should go after someone simply for the way they look or the religion they preach. And that's an important point here as well. But this does confirm what US Law enforcement has been worried about, which is a possible Lone wolf attack, a possible terrorist attack on the homeland. So we'll see what happens. I'm going to talk to Congressman Brad Schneider momentarily. We talk about everything that's happening in Iran and what Congress is doing about it. Before I do, make sure to like, comment, share and subscribe. And subscribe to my substack, click the link below. Here's my conversation with Congressman Schneider. Excited today to be joined by Congressman Brad Schneider. Now, Congressman, I want to jump right in and talk about the war in Iran. A lot of people are concerned right now. They see this war as lasting now almost 10 days. They think it's going to be a forever war. Based on what you've seen in Congress and what you've been briefed on, do you share those same concerns?

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

I share those and more concerns and I'll touch on it in a couple of, of ways. First, the war itself. This is not something that hasn't been considered for a long time. Even during the Obama administration, there was talk of military action to ensure that Iran never gets nuclear weapon. And we need to ensure that Iran never gets nuclear weapon, address their ballistic missiles, address their sponsorship of terrorism around the region and around the world. I think what we're seeing is the miscalculations by the Trump administration, the failure to anticipate Iran's stated intentions. This is nothing new. They always said that they would threaten the Straits of Hormuz, which we're now seeing. Oil over $100 a barrel and probably going higher than that, attack its neighbors. And we've seen Iran attack. I think it's up to 15 countries around the region just saw that NATO again intercepted a missile headed towards Turkey and NATO declared that that would be an Article 5 situation. It will defend all of its, its members. And there's no real clear plans coming from this administration. What, what are the goals of the war, the strategy, strategy to achieve those goals and the, the end game that we're trying to get to. All of those are concerns. And then I'll add the last set of concerns is to be generous, a compliant Republican Congress, both in the House and the Senate, complicit. You can pick your whole set of words, but my Republican colleagues are unwilling to stand up to this administration, not just on this issue, on so many others giving up on the original concept that our government would be three co, equal branches with checks and balances.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

Well, I was going to ask you about that behind the scenes at least. Is there any concern from your Republican colleagues? They may not say it publicly, but at least privately, are they talking about, well, we need a reign in this president a little bit.

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

So before the war they were starting to talk about it. And you've seen it in conversations, what they say in private throughout Trump's both the first and the second administration, you've seen that, that they express frustration but aren't willing to stand up. And I think what you're seeing more than anything is a run to the exits. Just had two more Republicans announced they weren't running next week. This, this war is different. There's a reason that the founders did not want a single individual, in our case the executive. What they were resisting or Responding to back 250 years ago was a monarch to take a nation into war. And they were very clear about it that I think it was. Monroe talked about it in the, in the Federalist Papers. Abraham Lincoln talked about it in, in 1848 when he was a member of Congress. And here we are today. And I have not seen much or anything from my Republican colleagues on this issue.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

So I guess what can be done to rein in the power of the president, especially if Democrats are in the minority in both the House and the Senate.

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

Well, the first thing is to get out of the minority. So we have an election coming up in November and the winds are at the Democrats back. I don't like the wave analogy. I use more of a wind or sailor sailboat analogy. It's up to the Democrats to trim ourselves and catch that win, to take us over the finish line and take back the majority. But you also run the risk of getting sideways and just as easily could capsize that Democratic ship moving forward. So we need to be focused on what we're trying to accomplish. Talk to the American people, explain to them why we're doing what we're doing to resist this, this president. But also understand that in the minority, we don't control the agenda and we don't completely. Actually we don't control the agenda in a normal time. In this time, we have been able to, to control pieces of the agenda, whether it was on health care and premium subsidies that we fought so hard for last year, the Epstein files and, and other issues, we've been able to try to move that forward. Tariffs is a, is a good example as well.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

I want to ask you about the strike that the President says the United States was not responsible for on an all girls elementary school in southern Iran. A new video obtained by the New York Times shows a Tomahawk missile striking the naval base right nearby. Analyses from a number of media organizations say that it was likely the United States. Is Congress going to look into that, especially if Democrats take over in November?

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

I expect that we will. And there's a few layers here. If we peel back the, I mean the first and foremost thing we have to recognize is this was a horrible tragedy, a horrible horrific incident where young school children were killed. I don't care whether they're Iranian or American. Young people are innocent victims. And in every word it's the innocent civilians who are caught in the middle. The second layer, and this is important to recognize is this school was located immediately adjacent to an IRGC base that is on the shoulders of the Iranians. And so that's obviously a concern. The, the third layer we have to look at is was there a, a failure of American intelligence? Did they know this school was there? Or what is being reported or I've seen is that they likely were not aware that there was a school here, although they probably should have known that. And, and then the decision making process, all of that is a part of after action reviews in any conflict. We need to be doing that in all cases. But again, there's the situation that the civilians. This is not a war against the Iranian people. In fact, one of the objectives clearly should be to help the Iranian people free themselves from the oppression and yoke of a regime that has never put the interest of the popular, its own population first and foremost, but rather focus on extending its ideology and expanding hegemony around the region.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

Now you mentioned that this is a war. I call it a war. Your Republican colleagues on Capitol Hill call it anything but a war. What justification, if any, has the administration given you all to continue these strikes without having any congressional approval?

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

I, I think from the beginning the administration's position is you don't have a right to question us. You being whether it's Congress, members of Congress as individuals or the American people as, as a whole. This administration, this President thinks that he, he and they can do whatever they damn well please. And I, I get so frustrated on, on watching my colleagues, my Republican colleagues try to twist themselves into pretzel the, that it's not a war. And it is true. The United States has not declared war since World War II. The Korean War was a police action, not designated a war. The Vietnam War was never declared a war. The two wars in Iraq and war in Afghanistan all had their, their different names. The fact of the matter of those were wars and this is war and we, the United States is attacking an enemy. There are things getting blown up and people getting killed. People's lives being put in danger. And again, the Founders were smart to say Congress has to have a voice. And I am imploring my Republican colleagues to join the Democrats and exercise our voice re establish the checks and balances.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

Congressman, thank you for taking a few minutes this morning.

[Congressman Brad Schneider]

Thank you. It was good talking.

[Podcast Host / Journalist]

Hey folks, thanks so much for watching. Feel free to add this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you watch for the latest breaking news and daily hits throughout the day. Make sure to follow subscribe. See you soon for more.

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