MAGA-aligned U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, appeared on Fox News to defend President Trump’s decision to attack Iran.
As seen and heard below, Mullin, who has never served in the military, said: “War is ugly. It smells bad. If anybody has ever been there and been able to smell the war that’s happening around you and taste it and fill it in your nostrils and hear it, it’s something that you’ll never forget.”
Note: Mullin, who did not appear to have concise talking points to make his case, also mistakenly called Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “President Hegseth” twice, saying Hegseth had “been there and done that.”
Mullin: War is ugly. It smells bad. If anybody has ever been there and been able to smell the war and taste it and fill it in your nostrils and hear it, it’s something that you’ll never forget. Fortunately, we have President Hegseth. President Hegseth has been there. pic.twitter.com/9bWtlXOjqy
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 2, 2026
U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY), a retired Captain in the U.S. Army who served in the Iraq War, replied to Mullin: “Hey @SenMullin, what the actual [expletive] are you talking about? Did I miss the part of your bio where you served in combat (or served in uniform at all??). Call of Duty doesn’t count.”
Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner, who’s running for incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins‘ seat in Maine and who also served in the Iraq War (and in Afghanistan) as a U.S. Marine, criticized lawmakers like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) who haven’t experienced war firsthand and yet say the sacrifice of the lives of soldiers is “just what happens.”
Note: Cruz, who said he advised President Trump prior to the attacks — “I spent the entire day with him, Friday, the day before he launched this attack, and he and I discussed it at great length” — told CNN that “when a nation engages in military conflict, unfortunately causalities are part of the risk calculus.”
Sen. Ted Cruz said he discussed the operation to strike Iran with President Donald Trump on Friday. Cruz said he urged Trump to remove the “teetering” regime. pic.twitter.com/5IjLQNATGO
— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) March 1, 2026
Platner said: “The people celebrating the bombing of Iran know nothing of the horrors of war. They’ve never watched a friend ripped apart by explosives. They tell us that these sacrifices are just what happens. But it’s never what happens to them. It’s what happens to us.”
The people celebrating the bombing of Iran know nothing of the horrors of war. They’ve never watched a friend ripped apart by explosives.
They tell us that these sacrifices are just what happens. But it’s never what happens to them.
It’s what happens to us. pic.twitter.com/Xwdli4GfmX
— Graham Platner for Senate (@grahamformaine) March 2, 2026