Newsletters
U.S. Vice President JD Vance suggested he has disagreed with U.S. President Donald Trump over the Iran war, in an interview aired Friday, as Trump says the United States may strike Iran's fortified Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site.
"I’m not going to convince you on the Iran war one way or the other, but aren’t closed borders and ending the ridiculous anti-white racial discrimination in our university admissions, aren’t these things worth actually acknowledging that Donald Trump has done a lot of good, even if you disagree with him on that one issue? You can have that disagreement," Vance said on a talk show hosted by former White House spokesman Sean Spicer.
"And I think I have had that disagreement," he noted.
The remark is the clearest public signal yet of daylight between Trump and his vice president on the seven-month war, as Trump weighs new strikes after the Nov. 3 midterms and divisions grow within his political base.
Vance was responding to a question about commentator Tucker Carlson, a former Trump ally who has sharply criticized the war. Vance said Carlson was "very, very angry" about it. "He and I have had that conversation in private, in public. I know how he feels, and I understand," he said.
Vance criticized Carlson’s praise of Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, who opposes the war. "This is a guy who says that the Iran conflict is a problem because it violates international law. How is that America First?" Vance said.
"I’m not going to do the thing where I say because I disagree with what Tucker has said about Abdul El-Sayed, therefore I think that he’s a terrible person and I disavow him. I am never going to do that," he added.
"Their nuclear is buried under millions of tons of mountain. Now we’re looking at Pickaxe Mountain. We may have to go there. We’ll take a shot at that one. We’ll knock it out fast," Trump told Newsmax on Thursday.
Asked about reports that the U.S. was considering using the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb, Trump said: "The mother of all bombs is not nuclear. This is just an extremely large bomb."
He ruled out nuclear weapons: "No, I wouldn’t use nuclear. We don’t have to."
Asked whether he trusted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said: "I don’t trust anybody, honestly. In the world of politics, I don’t trust anybody."
Iran’s acting Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Seyed Majid Ibn-al-Reza responded on social media: "The names and sizes of bombs do not matter. Your bomb will explode in your global reputation, in the U.S. economy and even in your election calculations."
"With the exception of the humanitarian assistance we’ve allowed in, Iran has no exports and no imports by sea," U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) chief Adm. Brad Cooper said in a video message, adding U.S. forces had blocked at least $25 billion in Iranian crude exports.
"Let me be clear: the Strait of Hormuz is controlled by the United States and our regional partners, not Iran, and it remains open for business," Cooper said, adding that about 400 merchant ships transited the strait over the past seven days.
The war began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, before a ceasefire was reached in April. Clashes between Washington and Tehran later resumed as negotiations stalled despite the two sides signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in June.
Tensions in and around the Strait of Hormuz have remained high amid the Iran-U.S. war and disputes about navigation through the strategic waterway.
Tehran maintains that it controls passage through Iranian waters in the strait and has warned vessels against using routes it considers unauthorized, while Washington has insisted on freedom of navigation through the waterway.
Recent attacks on commercial vessels in and around the strait have further heightened maritime tensions.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
