Trump acknowledged that the Iran war was “largely” responsible for the Republican defeat in the 2026 midterms, but said he had no regrets and “would do it again” to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Before the elections, his daughter-in-law Lara Trump likewise said he understood the conflict could cost Republicans both chambers of Congress and believed that price was justified. The administration’s four stated objectives for Operation Epic Fury, launched on 28 February, were to block an Iranian nuclear arsenal, destroy the country’s missile stocks and production capacity, bring about regime change, and end Iranian support for proxy groups. The article says every member of Trump’s cabinet endorsed those aims at the time.

The author argues that the election result is unlikely to weaken Trump’s commitment to the campaign. Trump has previously invoked former President Jimmy Carter’s handling of the 1979 U.S. hostage crisis in Tehran as an example of weakness, and has said he does not want to repeat Carter’s political fate. The article also says Trump wants Republicans to win the 2028 presidential election and would prefer a sympathetic government as Democrats consider censure or impeachment during the remaining two years of his term.

Trump’s record includes initiatives on immigration, energy, NATO funding and U.S. influence abroad, the article says, while his approach to Russia’s war against Ukraine has drawn criticism. But the campaign against Iran has proved harder than Trump apparently expected. A senior Washington-based Treasury source told OilPrice.com in March that Trump believed Iran’s leadership might collapse as quickly as Venezuela’s. The author also cites Trump’s 5 August comparison of the Iran conflict to the 48-minute operation in Venezuela. Trump reportedly dismissed military advisers’ warnings that Iran might close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for oil and liquefied natural gas, in response to an attack. Iran had threatened such a move as early as 1983, when then-President Ali Khamenei said the Persian Gulf would be closed if Iranian oil exports were cut to zero.

The article outlines three paths: keep sanctions in place in hopes of forcing Tehran back to negotiations; launch a ground invasion, which it describes as carrying grave risks; or conduct a sustained air campaign similar to NATO operations in Libya and Serbia. Those campaigns lasted 212 days and about 78 days, respectively. The author says Trump could pursue an air campaign, reopen the Strait of Hormuz and then withdraw U.S. forces, though the article does not predict which option he will choose.