Donald Trump defends Iran war despite Republican midterm losses

• Donald Trump admitted the Iran war contributed to Republican midterm losses due to rising fuel prices

• He defended the war, saying he would make the same decision to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons

• Trump backed defence secretary Pete Hegseth, while Vance blamed the war for Republican losses

US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that the war in Iran was “largely” responsible for Republican losses in the midterm elections, citing a short-term rise in gasoline prices. However, he defended his decision to launch the military campaign, insisting that he would make the same choice again, arguing that preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons was the “only answer” in the long term.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Trump was asked about vice-president J.D. Vance's remarks linking the Iran war to the Republicans' poor performance in the midterm elections.

“Well, I think it's largely true because it drove the gasoline up a little bit short term,” Trump said, acknowledging the political and economic fallout of the conflict.

However, the president maintained that the military action was necessary despite its electoral consequences.

“But at the same time, if I had it to do again, I'd have to do it again. Because long term, it's the only answer. You can't let Iran have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

Trump also rejected suggestions that the US could have handled the war differently, claiming that American military operations had severely weakened Iran's defence capabilities.

“As far as that war is concerned, I would have done nothing different. We've totally broken their military. The navy's gone. Their air force is gone. Their anti-aircraft is gone,” he told reporters.

Defending the campaign further, Trump pointed to the flow of oil through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, claiming that shipments had resumed in significant volumes after being disrupted at the beginning of the conflict.

“The Iran thing, we had to do, and we continue to do it. We have tremendous oil flowing out of the Strait of Hormuz now. At the beginning, there was none,” he said.

Trump also sought to distinguish between the war itself and its economic consequences, arguing that rising oil prices, rather than the military campaign, were primarily responsible for the political backlash.

“And, probably that's the primary reason – the price, not the war, the price (of oil),” he added.

Meanwhile, Trump dismissed speculation about a possible change in his administration's defence leadership, saying he was not considering replacing defence secretary Pete Hegseth despite public dissatisfaction over the war.

Hegseth is “doing a great job”, the president said, signalling his continued support for the defence chief amid criticism of the administration's handling of the conflict.

Vance, meanwhile, had linked the Republicans' midterm setbacks to the war in Iran. His remarks are particularly significant given his position as vice-president and his frequent mention as a potential successor to Trump in the 2028 presidential election.

The contrasting assessments from Trump and Vance highlight the political fallout of the Iran conflict, with the administration facing questions over the war's military objectives, economic consequences and impact on Republican electoral prospects.

While Trump acknowledged that the conflict had contributed to the party's losses, he remained unapologetic about the decision to wage war, maintaining that preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons outweighed the immediate political costs.

With PTI inputs