CNN: Trump Advisers Urged To Declare Victory Over Iran Sooner
- 5.03.2026, 13:31
The protracted war could affect the Republicans' position in the midterm congressional elections
Advisers and close allies of US President Donald Trump are calling for the military operation against Iran to end as soon as possible and "declare victory," knowledgeable sources told CNN.
They said that just days after the fighting began, there were already concerns among White House aides and allies of the White House chief about the political consequences of a protracted war with no clear end goal and little public support.
In particular, officials are worried about how the war could affect the Republicans' position in the midterm congressional elections due in November.
"It's a political risk, with no buts or ifs. Let's hope nothing really bad happens. Because if it does happen, it's going to be a problem," one of the American president's advisers said.
The CNN interviewees noted that even before the strikes on Iran, advisers tried to dissuade Trump from the operation, and after it began, they struggled for days to formulate a convincing explanation for the conflict. This led to conflicting statements from senior officials and a confused White House information strategy.
According to CNN, some Trump allies are hoping for a scenario in which the US can complete the bulk of the operation within weeks, seriously weakening Iran's military capabilities.
This would allow the president's administration to claim victory and turn its attention to the domestic agenda before the election. At the same time, analysts believe that even with such an outcome, the political benefit for Trump will be limited, as voters are primarily waiting for a solution to economic problems at home.
Trump has previously said that the military operation was planned for "four to five weeks." At the same time, according to an internal Pentagon document seen by Politico, the operation could last at least 100 days, up to and including September.
At the same time, the Pentagon has begun hastily increasing the number of U.S. troops engaged in intelligence gathering, and the State Department is allocating additional resources to evacuate Americans from the Middle East. This, the publication writes, indicates that the U.S. administration "was not fully prepared for the larger war it faced."