President Donald Trump is now facing pressure from his loyalists not to fold in his posture against Iran — and is growing frustrated over it, The Atlantic reported.
This comes as the president, faced with economic ruin and tumbling polls as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed and fuel prices remain high, is pursuing a framework for a deal to end the war — one that is a long way off, but still looming large with some of his allies.
“Trump-supporting Iran hawks, already disappointed that the regime in Tehran is still intact, feared the president was rushing into a bad deal,” stated the report. It reference Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) posting to X, “This combination of Iran being perceived as having the ability to terrorize the Strait in perpetuity” and the ability to “inflict massive damage to Gulf oil infrastructure is a major shift of the balance of power in the region and over time will be a nightmare for Israel,” and Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, who posted, “the rumored 60-day ceasefire — with the belief that Iran will ever engage in good faith — would be a disaster.”
Trump has responded to this anger within his own party by hedging, but behind the scenes, it’s aggravating him, the report said.
“A Trump aide told us the president was startled and annoyed by such pushback,” said the report. “But the public criticism, and behind-the-scenes lobbying from Graham and others, was one reason Trump changed his tune. Rather than hyping a deal as imminent, he began to stress on social media that the agreement was not quite done, and that he’d accept only a clear win — though he didn’t specify what that would look like.”
Graham, in particular, has long been one of the most consistent cheerleaders for military intervention in Iran, and went into the current war as an enthusiastic supporter.
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