President Trump and Secretary Hegseth suggest we could put US troops on the ground. That will never go over with the American public. However, President Trump will never take anything off the table, so troops might not be in the plan. I don’t think he will do it. Trump knows the risks if he sends troops into Iran, and I think he’s too smart to do it.
Sen. Lindsey Graham said there will be no ground troops while on Meet the Press. “Our job is to make sure Iran is no longer the largest state sponsor of terrorism and to help the people reconstruct a new government—no boots on the ground,” he said. Later, he added, “America First is not to get entangled. We’re not going to have any boots on the ground in Iran.”
The mixed messaging suggests Republican leaders are not entirely on the same page regarding the Iran War.
America First
Trump campaigned on an America First promise not to start new wars, and polling shows strong voter opposition to sending troops into Iran.
Trump said the strikes were meant to cripple Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities and urged Iranians to “seize control of your destiny” and “take over your government.”
So far, the U.S. has focused mostly on aerial attacks, but Trump told the New York Post on Monday: “I don’t have the yips with respect to boots on the ground—like every president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say it. I say, “Probably don’t need them,’ or “If they were necessary.”
Hegseth also didn’t rule out the use of ground troops.
Asked at a Monday press conference whether the U.S. currently has ground troops in Iran, he said: “No, but we’re not going to go into the exercise of what we will or will not do. I think it’s one of those fallacies for a long time that this department or presidents or others should tell the American enemies, by the way, here’s exactly what, here’s exactly how long we’ll go, here’s exactly how far we’ll go, here’s what we’re willing to do and not do—it’s foolishness.”
