Kolkata: US President Donald Trump came to power for the second time in 2024 riding on the popular waves of “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) and opposing US’ forever wars in foreign lands. However, with the Iran-Israel war escalating with each passing day, engulfing the Middle East into a vortex of chaos, the US President is facing a volley of criticism from the MAGA base over his ” I may or may not attack Iran” move. This week, when White House reporters asked Trump whether he will join Israel against attacking Iran, Trump responded saying he, “may or may not attack Iran”.
Trump has been a strong ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and hence provided the latter with unwavering support in the war against Iran, so much so that Trump has repeatedly threatened Iran about joining the war. However, the Trump’s MAGA community, which has supported the US President through thick and thin, is not united when it comes waging a war with war.
The objection of Steve Bannon
Stephen Kevin Bannon, popularly known as Steve Bannon, is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. During Trump’s first tenure, Bannon served as the White House’s chief strategist but was later fired by his boss. The same Bannon has now said that the US will commit a big mistake if it gets involved in direct military action against Iran. Moreover, he urged Trump to question Israeli intelligence and Netanyahu’s warnings.
While speaking with reporters, he said, “This entire military effort that they’ve done, now should the United States step in to finish it? The Israelis have to finish what they started. There’s no hurry for the United States to rush to a military solution. I realize that the president is looking at a range of alternatives. He’s looking at a range of alternatives, and he has gone out of his way to negotiate.”
However, Bannon also said that if Trump decides to go to war, his supporters will rally around him that too with conviction. He said, “I will tell you, if the president as commander-in-chief makes a decision to do this, and comes forward and walks people through it, the MAGA movement, you’ll lose some, but the MAGA movement, the Marjorie Taylor Greenes, the Matt Gaetzes, we will fight it up to the end, to make sure he’s got information, but if he has more intelligence and makes that case to the American people, the MAGA movement will support President Trump.”
Tulsi Gabbard sidelined in Trump administration?
Tulsi Gabbard is the Director of US National Intelligence. The expectation is that someone in the Trump administration would always support him in the conflict with Iran. Well, that’s not Gabbard. In March, she testified before Congress that despite Iran’s enriched uranium being at an all-time high, experts did not believe it was working on a nuclear weapon. On June 10, she posted a video warning that the “political elite and warmongers” were “carelessly fomenting fear and tensions” putting the war on the brink of nuclear warfare. As can be guessed, Trump dismissed her comments, and now Gabbard seemed to have been sidelined in the Trump administration amid the Iran-Israel war.
But she was not the only Republican who raised her voice against Trump on this issue. Republican congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky is another person, who surprisingly agreed with Democrats to introduce a bill to block Trump from engaging US forces in “unauthorised hostilities” with Iran. He posted on X, “This is not our war. Even if it were, Congress must decide such matters according to our Constitution.” Notably, Trump had often been vocal against “stupid endless wars” in the Middle East during his presidential campaign in 2024, and now, his supporters are pointing it out.
Another Trump loyalist jumps the ship
The list doesn’t end here. In a podcast, journalist Tucker Carlson warned the US to stay out of the conflict with Iran. He had a heated debate with Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas during an interview, with the latter calling for a regime change in Iran. However, a staunch Trump loyalist and Georgia congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene defended Carlson. According to Greene, anyone supporting such an intervention was not “America First”.
In March, Reuters/Ipsos conducted a poll to find out who was supporting Trump in his crusade against Iran. It showed that 48 per cent of Republicans agreed that the US should militarily defend Israel from threats no matter where the threats come from, with 28 per cent disagreeing. Among Democrats, 52 per cent disagreed while 25 per cent agreed.
What is Trump saying?
Donald Trump, as usual, is unperturbed by the criticism from his supporters. He told reporters at the White House, “My supporters are more in love with me today, and I’m in love with them more than they were even at election time. I only want one thing: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.” While he acknowledged that some of his supporters are unhappy, Trump also said others agree with him that Iran cannot become a nuclear power.
Vice President JD Vance has tried to paper over the rift with a social media post that reads, “People are right to be worried about foreign entanglement after the last 25 years of idiotic foreign policy. But I believe the president has earned some trust on this issue.”
But it is evident, that Trump’s involvement in the conflict between Iran and Israel is not sitting well with many people in the US, including his supporters and Republican colleagues. While his approval rating is still high in the country, Trump’s future decisions regarding the conflict will decide if the rating drops in the coming days, with the US government’s immigration policy already facing tremendous backlash.
