Congressman Eli Crane’s Response to Arizonans Seeking Answers: “I Hope it Works Out”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: 3/4/2026

FLAGSTAFF, AZ — Jonathan Nez, candidate for Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District and the former President of the Navajo Nation, issued the following response to Congressman Eli Crane’s recent comment ceding any responsibility for the conflict in Iran, saying he hopes it “works out.”

Statement from Jonathan Nez, Candidate for Congress, AZ-02:

“The Iranian regime sponsored terrorism around the world and brutally treated its own citizens. I have no sympathy for their regime. But despite this administration's promise to not take America into more endless wars, we have stumbled into one with no plan – and Americans are already paying the price. Rather than demanding a plan for the path forward from the Administration - Congressman Eli Crane just says that he hopes it ‘works out.’

We need Congress to assert its war powers authority and demand answers on why action was needed, how success will be achieved, what costs will be paid, and when will this end. 

But on this and on so many other issues – including our spiking health care costs and the tariffs harming our families and businesses – Rep. Crane does nothing but play politics and hope things ‘work out.’ It’s time for leaders who demand transparency and present real solutions. 

Brave American service members have already lost their lives in this conflict and now Americans and Arizonans are seeing gas prices skyrocket. I am praying for our troops and American citizens in harm’s way and I am praying for our leaders and Rep. Crane to put Arizona, our democracy, and the safety of our service members and citizens ahead of politics.”

About Jonathan Nez: Former Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, the 2024 Democratic nominee for Congress in AZ-02, grew up in rural Arizona, helping his family run a ranch without running water or electricity. Nez began his career in public service in his community of Shonto on the Navajo Nation, serving in a number of positions before being elected President of the Navajo Nation in 2018. He is running for Congress to lower costs for families, deliver water security to all Arizonans, and give rural Arizonans a voice in Congress. He lives in Flagstaff with his wife, Phefelia, and their two boys.