After Midterm Loss, Trump Weighs His Next Move in the Iran War

By ASN News Editorial Desk

ASN NEWS USA — SPECIAL REPORT

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WASHINGTON (ASN NEWS USA)— President Donald Trump is taking stock after his Republican Party’s midterm drubbing, and now faces the hardest question of his presidency: what to do about his unpopular eight-month-old war against Iran.

For weeks, Trump threatened to return to a full-scale bombardment of Iran once the U.S. elections were over if Tehran did not come to a settlement on his terms. In his first comments after Democrats’ resounding victory on Tuesday — a wave powered in part by voters’ dissatisfaction with the war — Trump largely agreed with Vice President JD Vance, who publicly called the war a catastrophe for Republicans.

“Locked In” — But On What?

In an Oval Office exchange with reporters Thursday, Trump suggested the election losses are not weighing on his calculations. “If we have to do the rest of the Iran thing, we’re very much locked in,” he said.

Analysts say Trump has at least a few options. He could hold the current posture — what the U.S. military calls “defensive strikes” while continuing its naval blockade to restrict the flow of Iranian oil. He could strike Pickaxe Mountain, a facility linked to Iran’s nuclear program buried deep underground in central Iran, then walk away claiming he did enough damage. Or he could follow through on his threats of massive attacks on Iranian infrastructure.

The Pressure From All Sides

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pressed for renewed strikes during a call with Trump over the weekend, according to a person briefed on the conversation. Trump would not commit to military action.

Meanwhile, markets are betting against a major escalation: the price of Brent crude tumbled below $95 a barrel on Wednesday after the election, its lowest level in two months. And emboldened Democrats, preparing to take control of both chambers of Congress in January, are vowing to reject Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion military budget and intensify scrutiny of the Department of War’s spending and operations in Iran.

The stakes could not be higher — for Iran, for the Middle East, and for the global economy. The American people have spoken at the ballot box. Now the question is whether the president is listening.

Stay tuned to ASN News USA for continuing coverage of the Iran war and the fallout from the midterm elections.

Reported by ASN News USA. Visit asnnewsusa.com or follow @ASNNewsUSA for updates.

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