Just before leaving to China on Tuesday, President Trump fielded question from the media and issued some shocking remarks which are sure to hurt, not help Republicans, during a week in which the Iran war hits the 75-day mark.
President Trumpconcededthat thefinancial situation for Americans was not a factor in his decision-making when it came to Iran, at a moment Americans are alarmed at steadily rising gas prices, and the potential that the cost of everything from groceries to other basic staples could go up. The real surprise was that he didn't even try dodge the question or massage the topic like many politicians would choose to do, instead he emphasized:"Not even a little bit."
"The only thing that matters, when I’m talking about Iran, they can’t have a nuclear weapon.I don't think about Americans' financial situation. I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon… that’s the only thing that motivates me," he added. Watch:
President Trump is asked how much he considers Americans' financial situation when negotiating with Iran:"Not even a little bit. The only thing that matters is they can't have a nuclear weapon. I don't think about Americans’ financial situation. I don't think about anybody."pic.twitter.com/BFxqVtZgQr
Congressional GOP members are no doubt squirming in wake of these blunt comments, and Trump's own staff surely wasn't thrilled. Trump didn't so much as hesitate in his remarks, and midterm elections are coming up fast, with the Iran conflict and Hormuz showdown showing no signs of abating.
Some have argued that Trump as Commander-in-Chief is in 'war mode' and so doesn't want to tip his cards or let the Iranians perceive that they have leverage and can impose a political cost, especially amid talks and stalled negotiations. But the reality is thatat the end of the day Americans by and large don't prioritize foreign policy issues over and above how their how bank account is doing, and their ability to maintain a decent standard of living.
One key problem with framing this as ultimately all about Iran not having a nuclear weapon, is that till this moment the official line from the US intelligence community remains that it sees no evidence the Islamic Republic is actually seeking a nuke. Nothing has changed of the public US intelligence community's assessment sinceheadlines like these were issuedduring the June war:Israel says Iran was racing toward a nuclear weapon.US intel says it was years away.
All of this is also perhaps why on Wednesday Vice President J.D. Vance seemed totry and nervously deflect and reject the questionas a reporter asked about Trump's "not even a little bit" remarks from the day prior. Here's the fresh exchange:
REPORTER: "Do you agree with the president's position that Americans' financial situations should not be a consideration in that [Iran] decision-making process?"
JD VANCE: "Well, I don't think the president said that. I think that's amisrepresentationof what the president said. But look, I agree with the president that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon."
Source: ZeroHedge News
