{"id":94082,"date":"2026-05-02T10:19:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T10:19:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/94082\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T10:19:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T10:19:08","slug":"a-defiant-iran-leaves-trump-with-few-options","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/94082\/","title":{"rendered":"A defiant Iran leaves Trump with few options"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0More than 60 days into his war with Iran,<\/a> well past public deadlines he had set for its end, President Trump sat through a briefing from U.S. Central Command<\/a> outlining yet another set of options for a fresh round of strikes. <\/p>\n

On offer Thursday were unpalatable choices for a president eager to move on from the conflict he started. Renewed U.S. attacks risk inflaming the war beyond Trump\u2019s control, undermining a fragile ceasefire<\/a> for which American allies fought hard. But the very need for such a briefing underscored how difficult a position the president has found himself in.<\/p>\n

A legal deadline for congressional authorization arrived Friday that threatens to increase pressure on the administration \u2014 and underscore lagging support for the most unpopular U.S. war in modern times. Global oil prices<\/a> remain above $100 a barrel entering the midterm election season. And a diplomatic breakthrough with Tehran appears nowhere in sight.<\/p>\n

Signs pointed to another U.S. military buildup in the region this week that could portend a fresh round of fighting. A U.S. Defense official familiar with the matter said the U.S. military has used the weeks-long pause to replenish its munitions. So, too, have the Iranians, who have reportedly increased their efforts to dig out stockpiles of missiles and drones buried by U.S. and Israeli strikes.<\/p>\n

\u201cAmateurs look at strategy; pros look at logistics,\u201d said Robert Pape, a professor of international relations at the University of Chicago. \u201cI have seen more buildup of force \u2014 actual firepower, with the addition of a third aircraft carrier, and logistics \u2014 than we\u2019ve seen since the beginning of the war in February. So there\u2019s been a notable change in the past week.\u201d<\/p>\n

The logistical surge appears to be a stream of Boeing C-17 military transport aircraft making their way to the region, alongside the addition of a third aircraft carrier. Only two carriers were in place when Trump first launched the war Feb. 28. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a pretty good sign that they\u2019re mobilizing,\u201d Pape added. \u201cThese are strategic and operational indicators. I would imagine they\u2019re looking for a sharp knock.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than 10,000 Marines from expeditionary units are now in theater, giving Trump the option to launch limited ground operations, such as seizing a small stretch of coastline or initiating an assault on Kharg Island, the hub of Iran\u2019s oil industry. <\/p>\n

Occupying Iranian territory could provide the Trump administration with leverage in negotiations with Tehran. But it would also carry significant domestic political risks. A clear majority of Americans \u2014 including many Republicans \u2014 oppose a ground war.<\/p>\n

More troops would be necessary to hold ground for any substantial period of time, experts said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do have the impression, from some of the briefings that I have received as well as other sources, that an imminent military strike is very much on the table,\u201d Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, told CNN. <\/p>\n

Departing Washington for the weekend, Trump told reporters<\/a> that a \u201cvery disjointed\u201d Iranian government, torn internally over whether to agree to a nuclear deal with the Americans, had put his administration \u201cin a bad position,\u201d uncertain whom to negotiate with or whether any agreement it might strike would be enforced.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now we have negotiations going on. They\u2019re not getting there,\u201d Trump said. \u201cThey want to make a deal, but I\u2019m not satisfied with it. So we\u2019ll see what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

And yet, the longer talks continue, the more pain Americans can expect to feel as global energy and fertilizer prices continue to skyrocket over disrupted commercial shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, affecting the costs of pocketbook items ranging from food and fuel to airfare.<\/p>\n

Trump hopes a brief new round of powerful strikes, potentially targeting Iranian infrastructure, will force Iran\u2019s hard-liners to support a negotiated settlement \u2014 a gambit that could backfire, after an inaugural volley of strikes in the war killed off the government\u2019s moderate voices, empowering the militant leadership of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo we want to go and just blast the hell out of them and finish them forever, or do we want to try and make a deal?\u201d Trump asked, speaking with reporters on the South Lawn. \u201cI mean, those are the options.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a letter addressed to Congress, Trump dismissed a 60-day deadline for congressional authorization for the war set forth in the War Powers Act, claiming the ceasefire with Iran had effectively stopped the clock on the administration\u2019s legal responsibilities. Democrats argue that an ongoing U.S. blockade of Iranian ports constitutes an act of war that, absent a formal diplomatic agreement, requires congressional approval.<\/p>\n

Speaking with reporters, Trump offered a less nuanced explanation. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s never been used, it\u2019s never been adhered to,\u201d Trump said of the act. \u201cEvery other president considered it totally unconstitutional, and we agree with that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The internal debate over resuming the war comes after Pentagon officials informed Congress this week that the conflict, dubbed Operation Epic Fury, had cost taxpayers $25 billion thus far.<\/a><\/p>\n

Pete Hegseth, the president\u2019s secretary of Defense, defended the effort<\/a> at a congressional hearing Wednesday, telling lawmakers that the United States was \u201cabsolutely\u201d winning the war.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilitarily,\u201d Hegseth said, \u201con the battlefield, it\u2019s been an astounding military success.\u201d<\/p>\n

He declined to say whether he had advised the president to launch the war in the first place.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0More than 60 days into his war with Iran, well past public deadlines he had set for its…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":94083,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[10201,5865,33200,33201,33203,34,33204,33202,1372,16183,680,69,392,858,36,5094],"class_list":{"0":"post-94082","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-iran","8":"tag-administration","9":"tag-briefing","10":"tag-defiant-iran","11":"tag-few-option","12":"tag-fresh-round","13":"tag-iran","14":"tag-logistic","15":"tag-modern-time","16":"tag-president","17":"tag-reporter","18":"tag-strike","19":"tag-tehran","20":"tag-trump","21":"tag-u-s-military","22":"tag-war","23":"tag-week"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/116504478897895987","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94082","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94082"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94082\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/94083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94082"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94082"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94082"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}