JERUSALEM, Israel – President Trump revealed that the U.S. stood just one hour away from launching another military strike against Iran before holding back for negotiations. Now, Tehran is issuing new demands, Congress is hearing fresh warnings about Iranian aggression, and the regime’s lawmakers are escalating threats against American and Israeli leaders.
As he has typically done over the past several weeks, Trump’s latest postponement came with a warning, and he commented, “I hope we don’t have to do the war, but we may have to give them another big hit.”
Speaking at the White House on Tuesday, he stated, “I was an hour away. We were all set to go.” He added, “The boats, the ships were all loaded, they’re loaded to the brim, and we’re all set to start.”
Calling Iran “the bully of the Middle East,” the president made clear that the ceasefire remains shaky.
Vice President JD Vance claimed that the U.S. is ready if talks fail.
“We’re locked and loaded,” he remarked. “We don’t want to go down that pathway, but the president is willing and able to go down that pathway if we have to.”
Vance assured, “This is not a forever war. We’re going to take care of business and come home.”
On Capitol Hill U.S. CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper told lawmakers that Iran and its proxies continue to target Americans across the region.
He testified, “Iranian-supported terror groups attacked U.S. troops and diplomats more than 350 times…killing four U.S. service members and wounding nearly 200 others.”
Cooper insisted that the U.S. blockade in the Strait of Hormuz is tightening the economic pressure on Tehran.
“There has been zero trade into Iranian ports and zero trade out of Iranian ports, squeezing Iran economically and creating powerful leverage for the ongoing negotiations,” he declared.
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Meanwhile, the regime is demanding reparations, U.S. troop withdrawals, an end to the fighting in Lebanon, and the lifting of sanctions, while avoiding any mention of its nuclear program.
The proposal appears to be nearly identical to an earlier offer that President Trump rejected as “garbage.”
Iranian state media also reports that the parliament is preparing to vote on legislation offering a 50-million Euro reward for the killing of President Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and CENTCOM Commander Brad Cooper.
In Washington, lawmakers are confronting the rise of antisemitism following the October 7th, 2023, attacks by Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Senators James Lankford (R-Oklahoma) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada) introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at protecting Jewish students, synagogues, and community institutions while increasing oversight of anti-Semitic content online.
Lankford stated, “People being attacked in the streets simply because of their faith and heritage: that is not who we are as a nation, and we unequivocally condemn antisemitism in all its forms.”
