In comments to reporters on Wednesday, President Trump is continuing to reject the idea of starting a war with Iran. After dismissing Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) calls, saying not starting a war was a sign of strength, he continued to roast Graham, citing Graham’s support for the Iraqi War, and saying reporters should ask “how did going into Iraq work out?“



Graham is being predictably hawkish, but it seems that he’s in a minority in the Senate, where even many of his fellow Republicans are expressing reluctance to escalate precipitously, and are urging debate on the matter instead of hasty action.



Speaking of hawks, President Trump is reportedly facing intense criticism behind closed doors from recently fired John Bolton, who attended a closed-door lunch on Wednesday during which attendees say he repeatedly ripped Trump for policy decisions.



Bolton’s objections, surprising nobody who was paying attention, were to Trump’s interest in diplomacy. Bolton insisted that diplomatic overtures to both Iran and North Korea were doomed to fail, and even trying to hold talks sends a “terrible message.”



Author: Jason Ditz Jason Ditz is news editor of Antiwar.com. View all posts by Jason Ditz