Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin accuses the Biden administration of turning a blind eye to sexual abuse reports targeting migrant children.
None of Trump’s stated goals in his war with Iran have been achieved. The post A Point-by-Point Breakdown of Trump’s Failed Iran War Objectives appeared first on The Intercept.
President Trump on Thursday canceled the impending US strikes to take Iran’s Kharg Island after receiving Tehran’s latest, finalized proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and began nuclear negotiations, he said in a post to Truth Social.
President Trump said on Thursday that the US will launch additional attacks on Iran for a second day in a row and threatened to take over Iran's energy and oil infrastructure. Trump announced on Truth Social earlier that the US will be hitting Iran "VERY HARD TONIGHT" Iran and taking Kharg Island, Iran's oil export hub, "in the not too distant future." Trump said the US will "assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela." The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT. The post (VIDEO) Trump Says US Will Hit Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT”, “Bomb The Sh*t Out of Them”, “Assume Total Control of Their Oil and Gas Markets” After Taking Kharg Island appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Speaker Mike Johnson fled down the Capitol steps Thursday rather than say whether Congress should vote on Trump's plan to seize Iran's main oil hub.Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, was caught by CNN's Manu Raju on the Capitol steps hours after Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that the U.S. "will be taking Kharg Island" — the Persian Gulf terminal that handles roughly 90% of Iran's crude exports — along with "other oil infrastructure points," to "assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets.""I think he's communicating directly with our adversaries over there," Johnson offered. "I would not — I would not put too much stock in the details of that right now, in the middle of this important —""But he put it on Truth Social," Raju cut in. "Should Congress have a vote before he does that?""Gotta take a photo here," Johnson said as he quickly walked away.Trump's Truth Social post landed after a morning appearance on Fox & Friends, where he'd been somewhat less certain. "My preference has always been — take Kharg Island… my preference would be that," he told the program. "I don't know that America has the stomach for it." He also promised intensified strikes Thursday night: "There will be more bombing tonight. It will be bigger — bigger, more powerful."By the time he hit Truth Social, the hedging was gone.Experts have long warned the island would be anything but a quick grab. "It will be hard to take. It will be hard to hold," an analyst told the Associated Press in March, warning a seizure could devastate Iran's economy without forcing capitulation.Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, was more blunt on the Senate floor. "This morning, Trump said he plans to take Kharg Island, which could even mean putting American boots on the ground," Schumer said, calling the broader Iran campaign a "fiasco."
The president's top advisers gathered in a series of Situation Room meetings as they struggled to contain a scandal engulfing Donald Trump himself.
A White House reporter drew attention to an "incredible quote" from House Speaker Mike Johnson regarding President Donald Trump's threats against Iran.The president threatened on social media to take control of Kharg Island and seize Iran's oil and gas markets, which would require the deployment of ground troops, but the Louisiana Republican dismissed his comments as a negotiating tactic."I think he's communicating directly with our adversaries over there," Johnson told reporters. "I would not put too much stock in the details of that."Associated Press correspondent Seung Min Kim was flabbergasted by the House speaker's statement."It's kind of an incredible quote because, you know, we are supposed to take the president of the United States' word, especially when he makes these really serious threats in an ongoing war," Kim said. "But what the president or what, sorry, what the speaker seems to be signaling, and we should note that the speaker has met with the president several times this week to talk about other issues, but I'm sure the issue of the war came up.""He's signaling that this is sort of this, you know, three-dimensional chess negotiation play," she added.Invading the Persian Gulf island would represent a major escalation in the war, and the president acknowledged the political risk in a phone call Thursday morning to "Fox & Friends.""We do need to underscore how serious of a move that would be, particularly on Kharg Island, because if, you know, aside from the reason why it's such a critical target, obviously being where all, nearly all of the oil exports go through, it's also very close to the mainland," Kim said. "So if you do have American troops there, it makes them very vulnerable to missiles, drone, other attacks from the Iranian mainland, and that is what the president is hinting at in his Fox interview, that this is something that the Americans would not have the stomach for." - YouTube youtu.be
All three host nations will have their own opening ceremonies.