US - Iran Conflict: Does Trump Know What He's Doing? Biden Questions White House Military Strategy After Soleimani Killing

Vice President Joe Biden is questioning whether President Trump and his advisers have a “plan B” now that it’s apparent the targeted strike that killed an Iranian general may have backfired.

Speaking at a private New York fundraiser Monday, Biden said Trump has brought the nation to the brink of war with last week’s assassination of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who headed the Islamic Republican Guards’ Quds Force. The Quds Force is responsible for spreading Iranian influence throughout the region and Soleimani was seen as the architect of some of the deadliest attacks on U.S. forces. Iran has vowed revenge and reportedly is considering 13 possible actions.

“No president can take the nation to war without the consent of the American people,” Biden said.

The U.S. has been trying to isolate Tehran from the rest of the world with the reimposition of sanctions following the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal between Iran and world leaders, which had curtailed Tehran’s nuclear program. Iran Monday said it no longer would abide by the restrictions in the agreement and would ramp up its uranium enrichment program, prompting Trump to tweet: “Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.”

The strike also had the effect of unifying Iranians, who had been staging protests against the government, behind the regime and solidifying relations between Iran and Iraq.

“The question is: Does the president have a plan B? What comes next? Have they thought through what they’re going to do from this point on?” asked Biden, who said there was no love lost with the death of Soleimani, who reportedly had been planning attacks against U.S. diplomats and troops in the region.

“In the process of this whole episode going on right now, we have alienated our allies,” Biden continued, adding, “It’s the first time I’m aware of that all of our NATO allies are making the moral equivalence between us and Iran. No one’s saying, ‘We’re with the United States of America.’”

Biden warned Trump’s action could create more instability in the region. It already has prompted the Iraqi Parliament to vote to expel foreign troops from the country, something that could allow the Islamic State group to reemerge. Russia and China also have sent more assets to the Persian Gulf.