He Is Confident of a Deal Tomorrow but Warns He Will “Blow Everything Up” and Seize Iranian Oil If Tehran Does Not Accept His Ultimatum
U.S. President Donald Trump issued his most forceful threat yet—rife with insults—to Iranian authorities this Sunday, following their blockage of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz: either they reopen the passage by next Tuesday, or he will order a massive attack against Iranian infrastructure.
“Next Tuesday will be Power Plant Day and Bridge Day—all rolled into one,” Trump declared, before asserting that there would be “nothing like” the attack he intends to unleash if Tehran fails to accept his ultimatum.
It is a warning Trump reiterated in the strongest possible terms: “Open the fucking strait, you crazy bastards, or you’re going to live in hell. Just wait and see. Praise be to Allah,” he concluded.
Shortly thereafter, speaking to Fox News, Trump expressed his absolute exasperation with the situation. “If they don’t reach a deal quickly, I’m considering blowing everything up and seizing the oil,” Trump indicated, before expressing confidence that an agreement could be reached in extremis by Monday—even though Iranian authorities have flatly refused from the outset to directly accept his terms.
“The important thing is that they aren’t going to have a nuclear weapon. They aren’t even negotiating on that point. It’s very simple. They’ve already conceded on that. They’ve conceded on most of the points,” Trump explained.
OPTIONS FOR AN AGREEMENT
In a subsequent interview with the news site Axios, Trump highlighted that “negotiations are going very well” through intermediaries, with the participation of Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. “But with the Iranians, you never quite reach the finish line,” he noted. “There is a good opportunity, but if they don’t reach an agreement, I’m going to blow everything up,” he warned.
The occupant of the White House asserted that, just a few days ago, Iran and the United States were close to finalizing an agreement to hold direct negotiations. “But when they told us they would meet with us in five days, I asked them, ‘Why five days?’ It didn’t seem to me that they were being serious, so I struck the bridge,” he explained, referring to the bombing of the B1 bridge in Karaj—on the outskirts of Tehran—in which thirteen people died.
To facilitate matters, Trump claims that the Iranian negotiators with whom they are dealing—without naming names—”have been granted immunity from death” at the negotiators’ own request, in order to protect them from further U.S. attacks like those that wiped out the top echelon of the Iranian clerical establishment—represented by the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei—at the beginning of the war.
He also referred to the Iranian opposition’s hopes for change. “The people of Iran are afraid that we might leave in the middle of the war, but we are not going to leave,” he emphasized.
Should that fail, he subsequently warned in statements to The Wall Street Journal, “if they don’t come to the table—if they want to keep it closed”—referring to the Strait of Hormuz—”they are going to lose every power plant and every other facility they have throughout the entire country.”
“There should be an agreement within a few days, because no one in their right mind could withstand the punishment that is going to rain down on them if they don’t… If there’s an agreement, there’s an agreement. And if there isn’t, we’re going to blow up the whole country,” he reiterated in later remarks to the American television network ABC.
THE MESSAGE OF AN “UNHINGED INDIVIDUAL”
Iran’s initial response came through its network of embassies abroad—such as the one in Pakistan—which directly called upon U.S. authorities to initiate impeachment proceedings against Trump on grounds of mental health. “DJ Trump must be removed from office due to his erratic behavior and his unfitness to hold high-ranking official positions,” the diplomatic mission stated.
“The responsibility lies with Congress and those who elected him, as well as with the Cabinet—which is committing treason by failing to invoke the 25th Amendment” of the Constitution, which triggers the removal process.
The Democratic Party opposition has not held back either. The party’s Senate Minority Leader—and de facto party chief—Chuck Schumer, has also openly questioned the President’s mental state.
“Happy Easter, America. While we head to church to celebrate with family and friends, the President of the United States is ranting like an unhinged lunatic on social media,” Schumer declared, noting that Trump is threatening to commit war crimes by targeting civilian infrastructure in an enemy nation during a time of conflict.
Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders, for their part, others have questioned Trump’s mental fitness. “One month after starting the war in Iran, this is the U.S. President’s message on Easter Sunday,” one individual noted alongside a screenshot of Trump’s post on Truth Social. “These are the ravings of a dangerous and mentally unstable individual. Congress must act NOW. Let’s stop this war,” they argued.
Along similar lines, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy called for the initiation of impeachment proceedings against Trump. “If I were in the Trump administration, I would spend Easter calling constitutional lawyers to ask them about the 25th Amendment,” he suggested on social media, referring to the provision regarding presidential succession in cases of vacancy, removal, or incapacity. “This is complete and utter insanity. He has already killed thousands. He is going to kill thousands more,” he warned.
For Agnès Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, Trump’s message is simply “repulsive.”
“I am running out of words to condemn this. Iranian civilians will be the first to suffer the destruction of their power plants and bridges. They will be left without heating, electricity, or water—and with no way to escape—with all the implications that entails for their right to life,” she lamented.
For her part, former Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor noted that “our president is not a Christian, and his words and actions should not be supported by Christians.” “He has gone mad,” she declared.
