Donald Trump dropped a religious ultimatum on Iran Saturday morning that’s part threat, part scripture, and entirely unhinged.
He posted on Truth Social that the clock’s ticking with just 48 hours left before “all Hell will reign (sic) down on them,” adding “Glory be to GOD!” with the kind of fervor you’d expect from a tent revival preacher, not a sitting president.
The deadline he’s talking about is April 6 at 8 P.M. ET, and he’s demanding Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face consequences that include resuming bombing campaigns against their energy infrastructure.
Here’s where it gets messy. Just two days after Trump stood in front of the nation on Wednesday and claimed Iran’s military was basically decimated, their navy gone, their air force obliterated, and their missiles nearly exhausted, a US F-15E fighter jet got shot down over Iranian airspace.
One crew member was rescued, but the other remains missing. That’s not exactly the narrative of a crippled enemy that Trump was selling.
Intelligence sources told Reuters that roughly two-thirds of Iran’s missile arsenal is still intact, which means Trump’s victory lap came way too early.
The war started on February 28, and so far, 13 American service members have been killed, with over 300 wounded. Iran’s death toll from US and Israeli airstrikes has surpassed 1,900 people.
The Strait of Hormuz carries about 20 percent of the world’s oil supply, and Iran’s blockade has Americans paying $4.10 per gallon at the pump, a 37 percent jump from before the conflict started.
Trump’s pushing this deadline hard because gas prices are killing him politically, and he’s betting that threatening divine retribution will somehow force Iran’s hand.
Senator Lindsey Graham, Trump’s war hawk shadow, immediately backed the ultimatum, weirdly calling it necessary for peace.
The majority of Americans already think this war has gone too far, and even Republicans are getting cold feet about another Middle East conflict.
Trump promised his base he wouldn’t start new wars, yet here he is with 48 hours on the clock and a military that’s discovering Iran’s far more capable than the White House claimed.