President Trump has everything under control and these Democrats are trying to confuse voters just before the midterms.
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., delivered a sharp assessment of President Donald Trump’s Iran strategy Sunday, claiming the president would like nothing more than to return to the situation that existed before the conflict began earlier this year.
Kelly did not say Trump personally admitted having regrets. Instead, the Arizona Democrat argued that the president is now searching for a way out of a conflict that has resulted in American casualties, billions of dollars in costs and continuing disruption to one of the world’s most important oil routes.
“I think what the president would love to do is get back to where he was before he started this thing,” Kelly said during an appearance on ABC News’s “This Week.”
His comments come as the Trump administration faces major decisions over Iran, the Strait of Hormuz and whether renewed diplomacy can produce an agreement acceptable to Washington.
Kelly Says Trump Is “Stuck” on Iran
During his interview with ABC host Martha Raddatz, Kelly offered a highly critical assessment of the administration’s approach.
“The president got into this without a strategic goal, without a plan, without a timeline, without an exit strategy,” Kelly said. “He’s stuck.”
The criticism reflects Kelly’s political assessment of the conflict. The Trump administration has presented its military strategy differently, maintaining that preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon remains a central American objective.
Kelly acknowledged that preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons must remain a priority. He also argued that Iran should not be allowed to control the Strait of Hormuz.
Where he sharply differs with Trump is over how the United States should reach those goals.
Kelly called for experienced national security professionals to take the lead in negotiations and criticized the involvement of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
What Kelly Says Trump Wants Back
Kelly’s most striking comment came when he described what he believes Trump would prefer to see happen next.
According to Kelly, conditions were significantly better for the United States before the conflict began.
He pointed to three areas in particular: Iran’s nuclear program, freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and American military casualties.
Kelly described the war as a major mistake and blamed Trump’s leadership for the situation.
Those statements are Kelly’s political judgments, not established findings about Trump’s private thinking.
Trump has given no public indication that he accepts Kelly’s characterization. Instead, the president has continued to argue that American pressure is placing Iran in a weaker negotiating position.
Trump Rejects Iran’s Latest Offer
The political fight unfolded as Washington and Tehran considered another potential diplomatic opening.
Trump said Saturday that he rejected Iran’s latest proposal, which called for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and restarting peace negotiations within seven days under a series of conditions.
Iran wanted the United States to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports, waive sanctions on Iranian oil sales and agree to other terms.
Trump said the proposed arrangement was unacceptable while indicating that he remained willing to reach a different agreement.
The president argued that Iran was seeking negotiations because it was under intense pressure.
Iranian officials have offered a different account.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran submitted its proposal through mediators and was awaiting an official American response through those diplomatic channels.
The competing statements show that both sides remain far apart despite renewed negotiations.
Strait of Hormuz Puts Gas Prices in the Spotlight
For millions of Americans, the conflict is no longer merely a foreign-policy story.
It is also hitting motorists at the gas pump.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most strategically important energy corridors in the world, with roughly one-fifth to one-quarter of global oil supplies normally passing through the waterway.
Traffic through the strait fell dramatically after the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran erupted, creating additional uncertainty in global energy markets.
AAA reported on September 24 that the national average price for regular gasoline had climbed to approximately $4.48 per gallon.
That was more than $1.30 higher than the national average one year earlier.
AAA specifically pointed to volatility surrounding the Strait of Hormuz and elevated crude-oil prices as major reasons motorists were paying more. The organization said the $4.48 national average was the highest ever recorded for that point in the calendar year.
The rising cost of gasoline gives the Iran debate an immediate pocketbook dimension for American households.
Questions Grow Over the Cost of the Conflict
The financial price of the military campaign has also become a growing issue in Washington.
Kelly estimated that the overall cost could now exceed $40 billion once military operations and other expenses are considered.
He also pointed to extensive damage suffered by American military facilities throughout the Middle East.
Determining the precise total remains difficult because different estimates include different categories of military spending, equipment losses and reconstruction costs.
Whatever the final figure, the debate is increasingly focused on how long American operations will continue and what Washington ultimately hopes to achieve before they end.
Trump and Kelly Offer Very Different Views
The disagreement highlights two dramatically different interpretations of the same conflict.
Kelly argues that Trump entered the war without an adequate exit strategy and now wants to restore the conditions that existed beforehand.
Trump, meanwhile, continues to portray U.S. pressure as leverage that could eventually force Tehran to accept terms Washington considers acceptable.
Neither side has yet produced a lasting agreement.
For Americans following the conflict, several major questions now remain: whether Washington and Tehran can return to serious negotiations, whether normal shipping can resume through the Strait of Hormuz, whether gasoline prices will begin falling again, and how much more the conflict will cost the United States.
Those questions — rather than Kelly’s speculation about Trump’s personal regrets — will ultimately determine how the Iran strategy is judged.
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