Tensions boil over at U.S. Senate committee hearing on the Iran war, as GOP Senator Tim Sheehy pitches in to help police remove a protester, Marine veteran

Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT) wraps his arm around protester's shoulder (Independent)

A protester apparently had his hand broken as he was forcibly removed yesterday from a U.S. Senate hearing on the Iran war. A scrum of security personnel struggled to remove Brian McGinnis, a North Carolina resident and a military veteran who was wearing a Marine Corps uniform. U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-MT), who participated in the hearing as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, assisted with removing the protester -- and some online commenters said video of the incident showed Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL, helped break McGinnis' hand or arm.

This is a report from Sheehy's home-state newspaper, the Daily Montanan. Under the headline "Montana Sen. Sheehy gets in altercation with anti-war protester, veteran, on Capitol Hill," Micah Drew writes:

Montana Sen. Tim Sheehy got into an altercation with an anti-war protester during a Senate Armed Services Subcommittee meeting that appears to have left the protester with a broken arm.

In a video shared by CBS News’ Alan He, three Capitol Police officers are working to subdue and eject Brian McGinnis, a Marine Corps veteran and Green Party candidate for the U.S. Senate in North Carolina, who shouts, “No one wants to fight for Israel.”

Sheehy is seen rushing in to help subdue McGinnis, grabbing his lower leg as the Capitol Police attempt to carry him through the hearing room door.

McGinnis hooks one of his arms around the door frame, and Sheehy moves to wrap an arm around McGinnis’ shoulder and pry him away from the door. An audible snap is heard on the video, and it appears that either McGinnis’ lower arm or wrist broke.

U.S. Capitol police alleged that McGinnis engaged in an illegal protest and noted that he would face a series of criminal charges. Might McGinnis have grounds to press criminal charges or file a civil rights/personal-injury lawsuit against Sheehy, whose duties as a member of a senate committee likely do not include assisting with security matters? We do not have an answer to that question at the moment, but one way or another, this incident probably will wind up in court. Drew writes:

Sheehy reposted the video on his own social media account with a statement.

“Capitol Police were attempting to remove an unhinged protestor from the Armed Services hearing. He was fighting back. I decided to help out and deescalate the situation. This gentleman came to the Capitol looking for a confrontation, and he got one. I hope he gets the help he needs without causing further violence.”

In another video showing McGinnis being escorted away, he expresses support for a Free Palestine, and the individual filming indicates McGinnis’ arm is broken.

As fallout from the incident, McGinnis definitely will have to tend to legal issues, Drew reports: 

In a statement, a public information officer for the Capitol Police said that McGinnis was treated for an injury, but did not specify the injury. The Capitol Police also said three officers had to be treated for injuries.

“This afternoon, an unruly man who started to illegally protest during a hearing, put everyone in a dangerous position by violently resisting and fighting our officer’s attempts to remove him from the room,” the statement from the Capitol Police said. 

According to the Capitol Police, McGinnis faces three counts of assaulting a police officer, and three counts of “resisting arrest and crowding, obstructing, and incommoding for the unlawful demonstration.”

“Protests are not allowed inside the Congressional Buildings. There are plenty of other spots on Capitol Grounds, outside, where demonstrations are allowed,” the statement said.

The Daily Montanan sent questions about the incident to Sheehy’s office, but did not receive an immediate response.

While it would have been best if McGinnis had been able to leave the hearing without being removed by force, the available evidence indicates his behavior stepped outside the boundaries of Senate norms. We do not have access to a video that shows the full incident, but it would have been unusual for a member of the public to be invited to speak. And even if invited to speak, if he became loud or disruptive, security personnel probably would have been within their rights to remove him -- although those rights might not have extended to Sheehy. This is from an AI Overview item about the usual procedure followed at Senate hearings:

While U.S. Senate committee hearings are generally open to the public to attend, private citizens are not typically invited to make live, in-person comments or testimony during the hearings. Instead, participation is curated, with witnesses selected in advance by committee staff, often representing specialized groups, government officials, or experts.

In short, Senate hearings are designed to be orderly, and if McGinnis was disorderly, his defense on the charges against him probably will be difficult.

Here is a brief bio on McGinnis from timesnownews.com:

Brian McGinnis is a former Marine who served from 2000 to 2004, participating in the initial Iraq invasion and later joining the All-Marine boxing team. After his military service, he pursued an education degree. His recent protest in the Senate highlighted his opposition to military actions involving Israel.

On X (formerly Twitter), commenters tended to be supportive of McGinnis and critical of Sheehy: Here is a sampling:

(1) From "Adam" -- BREAKING MARINE: “NO ONE WANTS TO DIE FOR ISRAEL”

Reports that they BROKE his hand. This is a patriot.

(2) From "Eh, What's Up, Doc" -- U.S. Marine Brian McGinnis. Imagine serving as a Marine and then being injured at home, on purpose, by a sitting Senator while exercising your constitutionally-protected rights. got dragged out of a senate hearing for standing up and saying what everyone is thinking.

(3) From "never again is happening now" -- What is wrong with America?

Why are we are NORMALIZING VIOLENCE toward protesters?

Let him speak then adjourn the meeting until he leaves WITH DIGNITY

(4) From "Danieee" -- The generals just sitting there like bots is probably the scariest part of the whole video.

Trump and Hegseth hardly are paragons of virtue, but on their watch, troops are being subjected to end-of-times theology as U.S. aligns with Israel in Iran war

U.S. troops have yet to start operating like a well-oiled machine as they seek to fulfill their Trump-mandated mission of attacking Iran to accomplish . . . something, although no one in authority seems able to articulate what the goal actually is. Even Secretary of State Marco Rubio does not seem sure if America launched its latest foreign adventure because of an order from its president or the whims of Israel's charged war criminal, Benjamin Netanyahu. 

At least our troops know they represent a pluralistic society where attending church generally is considered a good thing, but as a matter of constitutional directive, "Congress shall makeno law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." In other words, where and how to worship is your choice, and no one should be forcing a particular religious doctrine down your throat. Oh wait, according to dozens of complaints from U.S. troops, that already is being done -- in that not-so-pluralistic paradise of Iran. 

How is this happening? It seems U.S. military leaders want troops to chew on some peculiar religious ideas that sound like they came from the Book of Revelation. And that of course, in the words of the late Johnny Carson, is "some wild, weird stuff."

How weird is it? Independent journalist Jonathan Larsen, a former producer for Chris Hayes and Keith Olbermann  at MSNBC tries his best to tell a strangely un-American tale. Right-wing crusader types have been itching to force their religious vision on their unwilling citizens for decades now, and Larsen informs us it is actually happening on the watch of that noted theologian Donald J. Trump. Under the headline "U.S. troops were told Iran War Is for "Armageddon," Return of Jesus," Larsen writes:

A combat-unit commander told non-commissioned officers at a briefing Monday that the Iran war is part of God’s plan and that Pres. Donald Trump was “anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth,” according to a complaint by a non-commissioned officer.

From Saturday morning through Monday night, more than 110 similar complaints about commanders in every branch of the military had been logged by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF).

The complaints came from more than 40 different units spread across at least 30 military installations, the MRFF told me Monday night.

The MRFF is keeping the complainants anonymous to prevent retribution by the Defense Department. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to my request for comment.

There is grim irony in Larsen's words. The military became a bulwark for civil rights in America when President Harry Truman issued a pair of executive orders in 1948 that desegregated the military and prohibited discrimination in federal agencies. But the need to prevent retribution by the Defense Department suggests the Pentagon is knowingly violating the First Amendment's religion clauses, likely at the direction of Secretary of War (SOW) Pete Hegseth. Given that Hegseth has a reported history of being intoxicated on the job and has been accused of sexual assault, perhaps Americans should insist the SOW refrain from presenting religious instruction to troops. 

How dubious are the religious messages being relayed to our fighting forces? Larsen provides insight:

One complainant identified themselves as a non-commissioned officer (NCO) in a unit currently outside the Iran combat zone but in Ready-Support status, deployable at any time. The NCO said they were Christian and emailed the MRFF on behalf of 15 troops, including at least 11 Christians, one Muslim, and one Jew.

The NCO wrote to the MRFF that their commander “urged us to tell our troops that this was ‘all part of God’s divine plan’ and he specifically referenced numerous citations out of the Book of Revelation referring to Armageddon and the imminent return of Jesus Christ.”

That sounds like something ripe for parody on The Simpsons. This, however, is real, and it gets weirder, Larsen reports:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has enshrined evangelical Christianity at the uppermost levels of the U.S. military, airing monthly prayer meetings throughout the Pentagon. Last year, the Pentagon confirmed to me that Hegseth attends a weekly White House Bible study. It’s led by a preacher who says God commands America to support Israel.

Monday’s email from the NCO said that their commander’s remarks “destroy morale and unit cohesion and are in violation of the oaths we swore to support the [C]onstitution.”

The head of the MRFF seems astonished that he is having to address such an issue in 2026, especially when you consider that the Uniform Code of Military Justice forbids the injection of religious beliefs into official military instruction or messaging. Welcome to the Era of Trump, Hegseth, and Hypocrisy on Steroids, America. Larsen writes:

MRFF President and Founder Mikey Weinstein, a veteran of the Air Force and the Reagan White House, told me that since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran early Saturday morning, the MRFF has been “inundated” with similar complaints:

These calls have one damn thing in freaking common; our MRFF clients [service members who seek MRFF aid] report the unrestricted euphoria of their commanders and command chains as to how this new “biblically-sanctioned” war is clearly the undeniable sign of the expeditious approach of the fundamentalist Christian “End Times" as vividly described in the New Testament Book of Revelation.

Many of their commanders are especially delighted with how graphic this battle will be, zeroing in on how bloody all of this must become in order to fulfill and be in 100% accordance with fundamentalist Christian end of the world eschatology.

Weinstein cited constitutional and Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) prohibitions against injecting religious beliefs into official military instruction or messaging.

He said, “Any military members seeking to take advantage of their subordinates by advancing their blood-soaked, Christian nationalist wet dreams upon the flames of this latest non-Congressionally sanctioned attack against Iran, should be swiftly, aggressively and visibly prosecuted.”

Weinstein added that the MRFF receives similar complaints about Christian eschatology — end-of-the-world theology — “whenever this shit blows up with Israel in the Middle East.” 

To be sure, the introduction of end-times thinking into the military predates the arrival of Trump and Hegseth. Larsen reports:

After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, for instance, the MRFF reported a complaint about an Air Force commander who said at a briefing that, “[T]he war between Israel and Hamas has all been foretold by the Book of Revelation in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and no-one can do anything about that.”

After 9/11, Pres. George W. Bush referred to the American “crusade” against terrorism, evoking the ancient clashes between Christian crusaders and Muslims. Bush’s language was seen as potentially inspiring Muslims to take up arms against the U.S., if it proclaimed itself a Christian army waging war on Islam.

French foreign minister Hubert Vedrine said, "One has to avoid falling into this huge trap, this monstrous trap" set by al Qaeda with the 9/11 attacks. Bush dropped the term “crusade.”

Given that Trump has shown little regard for our nation's rules, regulations, and norms, it probably should be no surprise that religious indoctrination of our troops has ramped up on his watch -- even though he personally seems to have virtually no understanding of even basic religious principles. Larsen writes:

While Christian nationalism has simmered in the military for decades, Hegseth has ended even the pretense of official intolerance for it. Trump, too, has cast himself as a champion of Christian exceptionalism, embedding it within divisions of the executive branch.

As I revealed last year, Hegseth sponsors the weekly White House Bible study that preaches support for Israel. 

Some Christians claim biblical prophecy requires Israel to exist for Jesus to return. But Hegseth’s Bible study leader, preacher Ralph Drollinger, teaches that the reason to support Israel is that God still blesses Israel’s allies and curses Israel’s enemies, even though Israel killed Jesus (this smear, the historic root of antisemitism, has been rejected by every major religion).

After Israel’s attack on Iran last year, Drollinger dedicated two weeks of lessons to preaching support for Israel. His lessons went out to White House cabinet members and members of Congress even as Israel, too, was lobbying for U.S. engagement.

Hegseth has also initiated monthly prayer sessions, most recently featuring Doug Wilson, the far-right Christian nationalist. He has also brought in other preachers from his personal circle, rejecting any attempt at making the meetings ecumenical.

Hegseth himself also speaks at these meetings, proselytizing his personal religious beliefs. “This is … I think, exactly where we need to be as a nation, at this moment,” Hegseth reportedly said, “in prayer, on bended knee, recognizing the providence of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.”

While the MRFF historically has been able to get the Pentagon to swat down Christian incursions into the military, the Trump administration is openly disdainful of military norms and law. It remains to be seen whether and how wholesale Christianization of the Iran war will be opposed by officials inside the Pentagon, or political and legal advocates for secular values outside it.

Thomas Massie, Donald Trump's chief GOP critic, suggests the president's sudden urge to attack Iran is designed to reduce heat generated by the Epstein files

(Facebook)

One of Donald Trump's most vocal critics in Congress is reminding the president that an attack on Iran will not serve as an effective distraction from his domestic problems, particularly the Epstein files. That is from a jointly published report at the Daily Beast and Yahoo! News under the headline "GOP Rep Exposes Real Reason for Trump's War." Laura Esposito writes:

Donald Trump’s primary Republican critic suggests the president’s military operation in Iran has ulterior motives.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) issued a pointed reminder on Sunday that war won’t distract him from his push to force the Department of Justice to release all documents linked to Jeffrey Epstein.

“PSA: Bombing a country on the other side of the globe won’t make the Epstein files go away, any more than the Dow going above 50,000 will,” the Kentucky libertarian wrote on X.

Massie hints that, in his view, the Iran War and similar distractionary events are part of a Trumpian plan to put the Epstein files on the back burner of news reports. Esposito writes:

Massie is one of several Trump critics who have accused the president of staging foreign policy crises and other White House controversies to deflect scrutiny from his historic relationship with Epstein, particularly as new Justice Department documents related to the late sex trafficker’s crimes are released.

In January, critics also alleged that the administration’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro served as a temporary reprieve from bipartisan pressure surrounding Trump’s ties to Epstein, who once described himself as Trump’s “closest friend.”

Massie and his Democratic ally, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), spearheaded the Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA) —which Trump begrudgingly signed into law—directing the Department of Justice to release all files connected to Epstein, who died in 2019, by Dec. 19, 2025.

The DOJ has released more than 3 million files related to Epstein, though another 3 million remain withheld for various reasons. 

Massie's critiques of Trump go well beyond the Epstein files, producing pushback from the president:

Massie has also been a thorn in Trump’s side ahead of the president’s military action in Iran.

“Congress must vote on war according to our Constitution,” the congressman wrote on X on Feb. 19. He said he and Khanna “will be forcing that vote to happen in the House as soon as possible. I will vote to put America first which means voting against more war in the Middle East.”

Massie and Khanna are expected to bring forward a vote as early as this week aimed at curbing Trump’s military action without congressional approval.

That effort did not deter the president’s major attack Saturday morning, which reportedly included a direct hit on the Shajareye Tayabeh girls’ school in Minab, Hormozgan Province, killing at least 43 students and wounding 63 others, according to the Iranian state news agency Islamic Republic News Agency.

Early Saturday morning, Massie again took to X to voice his disapproval. 

“Acts of war unauthorized by Congress,” Massie wrote, linking to an Associated Press article titled “U.S. and Israel launch a major attack on Iran, and Trump urges Iranians to take over.”

In a separate post, Massie slammed Trump’s military action as an act of hypocrisy.

“I am opposed to this war,” he wrote in a post viewed 4.2 million times at the time of publication. “This is not ‘America First.’”

Massie continued: “When Congress reconvenes, I will work with [Ro Khanna] to force a Congressional vote on war with Iran. The Constitution requires a vote, and your Representative needs to be on record as opposing or supporting this war.”

As has become his custom with critics, Trump fired plenty of insults in Massie's direction, while becoming a fan of Massie's political opponent. From the Daily Beast report: 

The president has repeatedly referred to Massie as a “loser” and a “moron” and is backing his primary opponent, Ed Gallrein, in the 2026 race for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District. The election is set for May 19.