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People have been left confused by the conflicting messaging coming out of the Donald Trump administration in relation to the Iran war.
At the end of February, US president Trump launched the US into a controversial war with Iran in collaboration with Israel, notably without prior approval from Congress.
The highly controversial war has seen hundreds of lives lost, including those of six US service members, and seen gas and oil prices rise astronomically due to the violence in the Middle East region.
Iran’s retaliation to the initial US-Israel strikes has seen other countries in the Middle East becoming embroiled in the violence. Now, there appears to be no real idea around when the war will end, despite Trump’s suggestions that, “We've already won in many ways, but we haven't won enough”.
In a press conference, one reporter called out the mixed messaging that the Trump administration appears to be sending on the Iran war, as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told CBS News on Sunday (8 March) that “this is only the beginning.”
They asked: “You’ve said the war is, quote, ‘Very complete’, but your Defense Secretary says ‘This is just the beginning’. So, which is it, and how long should Americans be prepared for this war to last for?”
Trump responded: “Well, I think you could say both. The beginning, it’s the beginning of building a new country. But they certainly, they have no navy, they have no air force. They have no anti-aircraft equipment. It’s all been blown up. They have no radar. They have no telecommunications and they have no leadership. It’s all gone.
“So you know, you could look at that statement, we could, we could call it a tremendous success right now as we leave here, I could call it, or we could go further, and we’re going to go further.”
One Trump critic wrote: “What a time to be alive. To be governed by pure idiocy, just the dumbest people alive - but in charge.”
Another person said: “I feel like I am taking CRAZY PILLS.”
“It’s the beginning of a forever war that is also basically over. We’re practically finished and also only getting started. This thing is basically done and also might never end,” another mocked.
Someone else argued: “America is the only country capable of producing a creature this stupid and consequential.”
And, it appears as though Trump may be concerned by the consequences of his Iran war, particularly rising oil prices, as he posted in a Monday (9 March) Truth Social post that if Iran stopped oil from being allowed to travel in the strait, “they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far”.
He continued: “Additionally, we will take out easily destroyable targets that will make it virtually impossible for Iran to ever be built back, as a Nation, again — Death, Fire, and Fury will reign upon them — But I hope, and pray, that it does not happen!
“This is a gift from the United States of America to China, and all of those Nations that heavily use the Hormuz Strait. Hopefully, it is a gesture that will be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
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