April 07, 2026 10:45 AM UTC

"A Whole Civilization Will Die Tonight" Because Republicans Are Cowards

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• by: Colorado Pols

As the Washington Post reports, and if you’re not reading it there you can check with any news outlet literally in the world:

Twelve hours before his deadline for Iran to accept his deal or face destruction, President Donald Trump issued the country a grave warning, saying “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.”

“However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?” he said Tuesday morning on social media…

Trump has made threats at times seeming to aim for negotiating advantage. But the warning against the entire nation of Iran, with a population of 93 million, was remarkable for a world leader, particularly one who has laid claims to being a peacemaker.

This morning, President Trump threatened to completely wipe out Iran.

An entire country of 93 million.

That’s a war crime. Plain and simple.

This war needs to end. NOW. pic.twitter.com/vczaoXR8wf

— Senator John Hickenlooper (@SenatorHick) April 7, 2026

Reactions to this morning’s grave rhetorical escalation are coming in, Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado says, “That not tough. That’s a war crime.”

HICKENLOOPER: The president of the United States just threatened to kill an entire civilization. That’s not tough. That’s a war crime. And just a reminder, the statute of limitations on war crimes is never.

Hey folks, John Hickenlooper here, and this morning President Trump He threatened to wipe out an entire country. Iran is home to 93 million people. President Trump’s putting our service members and all those innocent lives at risk. This is reckless and it’s dangerous.

We’re still out in Grand Junction today talking with Coloradans. They don’t want this illegal war. Whether it’s Republicans or Democrats, Independents, every American needs to speak up against these crazy threats from President Trump. This war needs to end now.

Rep. Jason Crow, unsuccessfully targeted for persecution by the administration after he reminded soldiers last year of their obligation to refuse illegal orders, says, “These are not the words of a sane person.”

After weeks of pinballing between dismissing Iran’s closure of the economically vital Strait of Hormuz and raging against Iran and our allies for failing to join his military misadventure, Trump has issued a threat that is in the clearest possible terms incompatible with international law. The only way to excuse this direct threat to millions of civilians is to dismiss the competency of the man who made it, and that is another disaster for America’s reputation in its own right. Just a few months after throwing a fit that he was not awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the recklessness and irresponsibility of this moment is a struggle to fully grasp, let alone summarize.

But if there was ever a moment for Republicans, especially vulnerable Republicans like Colorado’s Rep. Gabe Evans, to say enough at long last is enough, Trump’s genocidal threat to destroy one of the world’s oldest civilizations has got to be it.

If it is not, then maybe truly nothing will be. And that will be something to worry about long after Trump himself is history.