REDMOND — At a town hall meeting Saturday, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., addressed the potential for war following the assassination of Iranian military commander Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani. Merkley expects Iran to respond to the attack since it would be the equivalent of Iran assassinating the U.S. secretary of defense, he said.

But Merkley said he is working in Congress to avoid an escalation into war. He also reminded the crowd that President Donald Trump does not have the constitutional authority to take the country to war, unless he can prove a terrorist connection.

“We have to try to interrupt the escalation into another major war that will endanger our national security and result in thousands of Americans who will die on battlefields and cost another trillion dollars in funds,” Merkley said. “We have to speak up. We have to do everything we can to stop that.”

The Redmond town hall inside the Ridgeview High School auditorium drew a couple hundred people who were eager to hear from Merkley on national topics, such as the impeachment of Trump, health care and climate change. Most people in the audience supported Merkley and gave him a standing ovation at the end of the town hall meeting. About 30 Trump supporters protested outside the high school before the town hall.

The gathering was the first of three scheduled meetings in Central Oregon on Saturday. Merkley also held town hall meetings at the Madras Performing Arts Center and at Barnes Butte Elementary School in Prineville.

Merkley, a Democrat from Portland, offered his thoughts at the Redmond town hall meeting about the Trump impeachment, which he said aligns with the protections the Founding Fathers established in the Constitution.

“The issues that have been raised are very consistent with the founders’ concerns,” Merkley said. “Is there an abuse of power, and is there a solicitation of foreign interference?”

Merkley said he shares concerns with House Democrats who believe Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is unwilling to hold a fair Senate trial regarding impeachment.

“To me, that is a violation of our constitutional responsibility,” Merkley said. “And I feel if you can’t take the oath in an honest and clear way to do it impartial justice, then you need to recuse yourself from participation in the trial.”

Merkley also discussed climate change in dire terms.

“The issue of carbon pollution and how it’s affecting our planet is the biggest challenge human civilization has faced,” he said.

Merkley said climate change can be felt in the forests, farmland and ocean. In the summer it produces intense wildfires, and in the winter, low snowpack.

“We have got to act quickly,” Merkley said. “The only good answer we have is to transition quickly from fossil fuel-based energy to renewable energy.”

Three seniors at Ridgeview High School — Naomi Gates, Danika Lundgren and Cody Woods — each asked Merkley questions during the meeting. Gates asked about mental health services, Lundgren asked about college affordability, and Woods asked Merkley what he thinks is his single best contribution to Oregon.

Merkley said his best contribution was in 2007, when he was a state representative and helped pass the Equality Act that prohibited discrimination in Oregon based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

“The thing that I think was the biggest deal was the Equality Act so that no more doors were slammed on our LGBTQ community here in the state of Oregon,” he said.

Merkley commended the audience for having a civil conversation with him about the nation’s issues.

“Thank you all for being engaged,” he said. “Let’s seize the moment provided in our constitution to put America back on track.”