Bresnahan breaks with Trump on Iran war in debate with Democrat Cognetti

Rep. Rob Bresnahan, a Pennsylvania Republican, and Democrat Paige Cognetti clashed Thursday night over the Iran war and the spread of data centers. They are competing for Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report rates the race a toss-up ¹.

Cognetti has been mayor of Scranton since 2020. WVIA News hosted the debate, which came five days before the Nov. 3 election ¹.

The Iran war

Cognetti said the Trump administration and Congress have not been open about the military operation. She said "we need real diplomacy." She also said she is concerned about shrinking stockpiles of munitions ¹.

She went after Bresnahan's record directly. In her telling, he "has voted for it six times, as recently as last September" ¹.

From Channel GOPEl-Sayed ties Rogers to Trump's Iran warAbdul El-Sayed · 196 plays · captioned, with the source named

This has been a war of choice, and the American people are waiting for answers, and we are not getting them.

Bresnahan split from President Trump on the war. He said it has gone on "far too long" and that the mission has been accomplished. He also said he does not support putting troops on the ground ¹.

He argued the answer is more American energy production. He said there is no reason the country should depend on Middle East oil ¹. The war has added to voter frustration over rising gas prices and economic worries ¹.

Data centers

Data centers are large buildings full of computers that use a lot of electricity. Cognetti said many proposals are coming to the district "in part because Congressman Bresnahan invited them." She said she could accept some projects, naming a nuclear site at Berwick. But she said they must have no nondisclosure agreements and a seat at the table for local union labor ¹.

Bresnahan answered that a data center ordinance has sat before Scranton City Council for more than eight months without action. He said he was the first member of Congress to write a bill, the Local Control Protection Act, to return the decision to local communities ¹.

The Associated Press reported in July that his bill would limit a company's right to sue over local zoning denials of data center applications. It said the bill had not left committee and had no cosponsors. That same report said Cognetti began a 30-second TV ad in late July, at an initial cost of about $200,000, attacking developer secrecy, state tax breaks and higher electric bills ².

Health care and what comes next

Near the end, Bresnahan pointed to times he has stood up to his party and Trump. He cited signing a Democratic-backed petition to force a House vote on extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies, which have expired ¹.

Decision Desk HQ, a partner of The Hill, forecasts that Cognetti is narrowly favored to win ¹. Voters decide Tuesday.

That matters because Bresnahan now says the war should end, yet Cognetti says he voted for it six times. Voters in a district that Republicans have made a high priority will weigh those two accounts ¹².

The Record

1. Jul 28, 2026AP reports Cognetti's new TV ad targets data centers; Bresnahan's local-control bill had not left committee ².
2. Oct 29, 2026Bresnahan and Cognetti debate on WVIA News over the Iran war and data centers ¹.
3. Nov 3, 2026Election Day; Cook rates Pennsylvania's 8th District a toss-up ¹.

Sources

1. The Hill, “Sparks fly between Bresnahan, Cognetti in Pennsylvania House debate” (2026-10-30). thehill.com/homenews/campaign/6183129-bresnahan-cognetti-deb
2. AP via PBS NewsHour, “Pennsylvania Democrat targets data centers in drive to oust Republican from House seat” (2026-07-28). pbs.org/newshour/politics/pennsylvania-democrat-targets-data

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