Trump Threatens to Send Troops Into Iran After Incoherent Rant

Source: The New Republic · Bias: Left

Summary

“Very little” is off the table with the war in Iran, according to Donald Trump.In separate phone calls Sunday, the president suggested that he was open to introducing practically every form of violence in the ongoing conflict unless the Middle Eastern nation agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.That includes the possibility of ground troops, which Trump explicitly said he would not rule out unless Iran makes a deal.“Normal people would make a deal. Smart people would make a deal,” the president told The Hill. “If they were smart they would make a deal.”Earlier on that day, Trump threatened that Iranians would be “living in hell” by Tuesday unless the country’s leadership agreed to reopen the vital trade route.“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell—JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP,” Trump posted to Truth Social.In another post to his social media platform, Trump wrote: “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time.”Trump carried that tone over to a conversation with ABC News, in which he promised that he would task America’s military with “blowing up the whole country.”The president also drastically ramped up the conflict’s projected timeline, claiming that the war should be over in “days, not weeks.”“It should be wrapped up in days because no sane group of people could stand the punishment that’s going to rain down on them if it’s not,” he told ABC.Situated between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the strait funnels approximately one-fifth of all crude oil shipments. Most of that oil would head towards China or India. In 2024, the U.S. imported roughly 500,000 barrels of crude oil per day through the strait, accounting for about seven percent of total U.S. crude imports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.The price per barrel has nonetheless exploded due to the strait’s closure, pushing gas over $4 per gallon in most states (in California, gas in some counties has leaped past $7 a gallon). Diesel shot up by 20 cents over the last week alone.The economic fallout has struck fear in the Republican Party, whose lawmakers have taken to grumbling about the domestic ramifications of the war, and the impact it will have at the ballot box come November. Trump, meanwhile, has waffled dramatically, claiming in quick succession that he doesn’t care if the strait remains closed and that he wants it reopened.But beyond the nickels and dimes, the war has cost the lives of more than 2,000 people in Iran, including dozens of political leaders, according to Al Jazeera. At least 13 U.S. soldiers have also been killed in the war, and more than 300 have been wounded.

Related Coverage

Daily Analysis

Read the full Parallax Pulse for April 4, 2026 — an AI-powered analysis of how Left and Right media covered the biggest stories this day.

More Headlines From April 4, 2026

arallaxNews.io
Trump Threatens to Send Troops Into Iran After Incoherent Rant
The New Republic

Trump Threatens to Send Troops Into Iran After Incoherent Rant

Left

“Very little” is off the table with the war in Iran, according to Donald Trump.In separate phone calls Sunday, the president suggested that he was open to introducing practically every form of violence in the ongoing conflict unless the Middle Eastern nation agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.That includes the possibility of ground troops, which Trump explicitly said he would not rule out unless Iran makes a deal.“Normal people would make a deal. Smart people would make a deal,” the president told The Hill. “If they were smart they would make a deal.”Earlier on that day, Trump threatened that Iranians would be “living in hell” by Tuesday unless the country’s leadership agreed to reopen the vital trade route.“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell—JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP,” Trump posted to Truth Social.In another post to his social media platform, Trump wrote: “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time.”Trump carried that tone over to a conversation with ABC News, in which he promised that he would task America’s military with “blowing up the whole country.”The president also drastically ramped up the conflict’s projected timeline, claiming that the war should be over in “days, not weeks.”“It should be wrapped up in days because no sane group of people could stand the punishment that’s going to rain down on them if it’s not,” he told ABC.Situated between Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the strait funnels approximately one-fifth of all crude oil shipments. Most of that oil would head towards China or India. In 2024, the U.S. imported roughly 500,000 barrels of crude oil per day through the strait, accounting for about seven percent of total U.S. crude imports, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.The price per barrel has nonetheless exploded due to the strait’s closure, pushing gas over $4 per gallon in most states (in California, gas in some counties has leaped past $7 a gallon). Diesel shot up by 20 cents over the last week alone.The economic fallout has struck fear in the Republican Party, whose lawmakers have taken to grumbling about the domestic ramifications of the war, and the impact it will have at the ballot box come November. Trump, meanwhile, has waffled dramatically, claiming in quick succession that he doesn’t care if the strait remains closed and that he wants it reopened.But beyond the nickels and dimes, the war has cost the lives of more than 2,000 people in Iran, including dozens of political leaders, according to Al Jazeera. At least 13 U.S. soldiers have also been killed in the war, and more than 300 have been wounded.

Read Full Story at Source