President Donald Trump attacked the “Fake News Media” on Monday for reporting that he plans to order a limited strike on Iran in order to force a deal that requires the Islamic regime to make concessions for its nuclear program.
In a lengthy Truth Social post on Monday, he denied that Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine has been considering a targeted strike on Iran that leads to a broader military conflict in the region.
“He has not spoken of not doing Iran, or even the fake limited strikes that I have been reading about, he only knows one thing, how to WIN and, if he is told to do so, he will be leading the pack,” Trump wrote, turning his attention to recent news reports about his plans for attacking Iran. “Everything that has been written about a potential War with Iran has been written incorrectly, and purposefully so.”
The president insisted he is the one who holds the authority to order such an attack, even though Congress is the sole body that can declare war against another nation.
“I am the one that makes the decision,” he said. “I would rather have a Deal than not but, if we don’t make a Deal, it will be a very bad day for that Country and, very sadly, its people, because they are great and wonderful, and something like this should never have happened to them.”
Trump previously said he was “considering” a targeted strike as a tactic to force Iran to make a deal with the United States.
If no progress in the negotiations for a possible nuclear deal is made, Trump may authorize the U.S. military to attack Iran, with the president having already surged military assets to the Middle East. The White House has not made a final decision yet. A meeting between the U.S. and Iran is set for Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland.
New reporting from Axios, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post says Caine is concerned about the risks involved in launching a military operation targeting Iran, with depleted U.S. critical munitions and a lack of support from U.S. allies being among the reported points of concern for Caine.
Trump claimed such reports were “fake” and “100% incorrect,” but he apparently mischaracterized the top military general’s caution as opposition to the war. Still, Trump maintains, Caine believes the U.S. can easily defeat Iran.
“General Caine, like all of us, would like not to see War but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a Military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won,” the president said.
AS TRUMP RATCHETS UP PRESSURE ON IRAN, BOTH SIDES SEEK OFF-RAMP
Trump then praised Caine’s involvement in Operation Midnight Hammer, in which U.S. B-2 bombers targeted and destroyed multiple Iranian nuclear facilities last June. Despite its success, the bombing operation significantly escalated tensions with Iran, leading to the current situation.
Iran has repeatedly vowed to attack U.S. bases in the region if the country is attacked. Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic is facing pushback from its own citizens in anti-government protests that resurged over the weekend. A previous series of protests was met with force from Iranian security forces.
