Son of a Gun: President Trump Blasts Khamenei Heir as ‘Lightweight’

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(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

In an eight-minute phone call with Axios — his second recent conversation with the outlet on the administration’s war planning — President Trump made explicit what Washington had only implied: the U.S. intends to shape what comes next in Iran. “I have to be involved in the appointment,” Trump said, drawing a direct parallel to the administration’s role in Venezuela’s leadership transition. “Like with Delcy.” The immediate catalyst was Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ali Khamenei, killed during the ongoing U.S.–Israeli campaign. Mojtaba had been widely viewed as the most likely successor. Trump dispatched that notion without ceremony. “They

On Iran, Senate Republicans Stay With Trump

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(Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

There are moments in Washington when the vote itself tells you everything. Wednesday was one of them. Senate Republicans closed ranks behind President Trump, defeating a Democratic resolution that would have curbed the administration’s military authority in Iran. The margin was not surprising. The meaning was not subtle. Senate Republicans, by and large, have decided this is their war too — or at least that it is not their place to say otherwise. The resolution, brought by Virginia’s Tim Kaine, would have required explicit congressional authorization before further hostilities against Tehran could continue. It failed largely along party lines, a

The Last Ballot of the Supreme Council: Israel Strikes Iranian Succession Meeting

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(Photo by Negar / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

They were counting votes. Israel was counting targets. On Tuesday, Israeli forces struck a meeting of Iran’s Supreme Council as officials gathered to select a successor to the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to a senior Israeli official who spoke to Fox News. “Israel struck while they were counting the votes for the appointment of the supreme leader,” the official said. But it wasn’t just a strike. It was a statement. The message was that no room in Tehran is beyond reach. Not the bunker. Not the council chamber. Not the backroom where power is handed from one cleric to

A Strike, A Statute, And The Old Argument: Rubio Confirms Admin Alerted Gang of Eight

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(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Secretary of State Marco Rubio strode into the Capitol and delivered a message as crisp as a gavel strike: President Trump did not need Congress’s permission to hit Iran. “No,” Rubio said, when asked if lawmakers had to weigh in first. The answer was not wrapped in legalese. It was wrapped in confidence. “We notified Congress. We notified the Gang of Eight. We notified the congressional leadership. There’s no law that requires us to do that,” he said. Rubio’s point was simple. The War Powers Resolution requires notice within 48 hours of hostilities. The administration says it gave that notice.

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