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Republican lawmakers want to return to “maximum pressure” on Iran in the second Trump administration and are widely open to the idea of strikes on Iranian nuclear sites if it is the only way to prevent Tehran from getting nuclear weapons.
President-elect Trump is expected to increase pressure on Iran through sanctions as a first step to deter Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. But his team is also considering the possibility of military strikes.
Lawmakers warn that such action depends on how Iran’s nuclear weapons production develops and how Tehran acts in the Middle East, where it has dealt repeated blows to its proxies and allies in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.
“These guys hate us. They hate Israel, and we’ve lost deterrence,” said Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), a key lawmaker on the House Armed Services Committee, who pointed to the two Iranian attacks on the main ally of the US in the Middle East, Israel. “We try to restrict all their energy exports.”
Bacon also said he was open to attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
“If Iran does things that they’ve been doing, like doing these missile attacks or other kinds of attacks on Americans, we should take that opportunity to take out their nuclear force,” he said. “If Iran opens the door by being aggressive with us on something, that should be our response.”
The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, has warned that Iran has enriched uranium to 60 percent. It has to come in just below the 90 percent threshold to produce a nuclear weapon.
A November report of The Office of the Director of National Intelligence indicated that Iran has enough fissile material for a dozen nuclear bombs if the uranium is further enriched, showing that Tehran is on the verge of producing a weapon of mass destruction. massive
Trump’s team is considering airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites if economic pressure is not enough to curb Tehran’s nuclear program. The Wall Street Journal reported. Publicly, however, Trump has avoided answering questions about the possibility of attacks on Iran.
“I can’t tell you that. It’s a wonderful question.” he said at a press conference on Monday. “Am I going to do preemptive strikes? Can you imagine if I said yes or no? You’d be like, ‘That was weird that I answered that question.’
But in a Interview with Time magazine this month, Trump did not rule out a possible war with Iran during his second presidency.
“Anything can happen. Anything can happen,” he said. “It’s a very volatile situation.”
Republicans are generally united in pushing for a return to maximum pressure on Iran after what they see as a policy of appeasement during the Biden administration, which tried and failed to renegotiate a 2015 nuclear deal that limited nuclear production Iran in exchange for sanctions relief. .
In the late summer of 2023, the GOP expressed deep concern about Biden’s deal to release detainees in Iran in exchange for the release of about $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds.
The Biden administration froze those funds again after the Iranian-backed Palestinian militant group Hamas invaded southern Israel in October 2023, starting a war in Gaza and prompting other allied groups from Tehran in Iraq, Syria and Yemen began firing at US forces in the region. .
But Republicans have long criticized the move as appeasement and are eager for the return of Trump, who in his first term pulled out of the 2015 Iran deal.
“Biden’s weak appeasement policies have failed to deter Iran. I support a return to President Trump’s maximum pressure policy on Iran,” said Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), President of the House Armed Services Committee, in a statement. Rogers did not respond to a question about whether he supports Iranian nuclear sites.
Rep. Keith Self (R-Texas), who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he wanted a second Trump administration to focus on restricting Iran’s oil sales and revenue.
“And, frankly, look very carefully at their nuclear program,” he told The Hill.
Self said he would consider supporting attacks on Iranian nuclear sites “depending on what we learn about the nuclear program.”
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, also called for maximum pressure on Iran and indicated an openness to attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities.
“Iran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon or threaten the United States and its allies,” he said in a statement, adding that he believes “Trump should use every means at his disposal to ensure keep the Americans and our friends out of it. real and dangerous threat.”
Defense policy groups in Washington have also floated the idea of attacking Iran’s nuclear sites.
Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) he said in a report on Thursday that Trump “will have almost zero time or margin for error to avoid a nuclear Iran” and that the incoming president should exert maximum pressure and issue “credible threats” against Tehran.
JINSA noted that Iran has been weakened by Israeli attacks and Israel’s damage to its proxies Hezbollah and Hamas, along with the fall of its ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria to rebel groups this month.
“Iran’s nuclear program is now more vulnerable than ever, lending serious credibility and urgency to US and Israeli military options,” a summary of the report said.
The pro-Israel organization said Trump should consider negotiations with Iran “if only to generate support for much tougher US-led pressure” and that the president should be ready to walk away and consider more options tough
“To take advantage of this unique but fleeting opportunity, Trump should join Israel in giving Iran an ultimatum early in his presidency: either fully accept and immediately verifiably dismantle its nuclear weapons program or invite -ne to imminent and absolute destruction,” he said.
Israel previously considered the possibility of nuclear strikes on Iran in October, following Tehran’s massive missile and drone strike against the US ally. The Iranian attack did some damage, but was largely defeated.
While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was pondering a response, President Biden had pushed him to consider other options besides targeting nuclear sites, fearing an escalation.
Israel eventually countered Iran by striking military sites and missile production facilities.
A key part of the debate in the run-up to Israel’s retaliation centered on the fact that Iran’s nuclear facilities are distributed throughout the countrymaking the target difficult, while even successful strikes would only set Tehran back months or years.
And striking Iran without pretext could raise tensions in an already volatile region.
Kelsey Davenport, director of nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association, in a Wednesday analysis noted newly elected Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s interest in talks with the US over his country’s nuclear program. He also said Iran is more likely to develop a nuclear weapon if provoked after its regional strategic losses make it vulnerable.
“The incoming Trump administration should recognize the importance of sending early and consistent signals to Iran that it is interested in quickly starting a negotiation process, with the goal of reaching an agreement within the first six months of 2025, and condemn the free speech on pre-emptive military action against Iran,” he wrote.
Republicans argue that force is the best way to quell threats from Iran.
Rep. Cory Mills (R-Fla.), a member of the House Armed Services Committee who is closely aligned with Trump, said he wanted strong sanctions and the return of the foreign terrorist organization designation for the Houthis backed by Iran in Yemen, who have fought. against American forces in the Red Sea since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas.
“But also making sure we have diplomatic isolation and maximum financial sanctions on the regime itself,” he said. “These are all things they will play to try to squeeze the Iranian regime.”
Mills balked at whether he would support attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites. “The great thing about military strategy is that you don’t necessarily tell your enemies what you’re doing or what you’re not going to do. I don’t think it would be wise to go ahead and say, ‘This is what we’re doing.’ Go ahead and prepare.”
Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.), also on the committee, said Iran needs to “feel pain” when it attacks the US or its allies, adding that it would “in theory” support attacks on nuclear sites from Iran
“No one wants to start another war, but their nuclear facilities are bad news for the stability of the region.”
