President Donald Trump’s latest social media posts have many wondering if the United States is entering the war against Iran, and if so, what is his strategy?

At 11:55 AM, Trump posted to Truth Social, “We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran. Iran had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment, and plenty of it, but it doesn’t compare to American made, conceived, and manufactured ‘stuff.’ Nobody does it better than the good ol’ USA.”

Minutes later, at 12:19 PM, he added, “We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there – We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

And then, at 12:22 PM, he demanded, “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”

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To that last post, political scientist Ian Bremmer responded, “Hard to pull back from this.”

Barbara Starr, the longtime, now former CNN national security reporter, responded to Trump’s posts:

“Sometimes you want ambiguity some officials might say. But when it comes to nukes, clarity is vital to avoid catastrophic miscalculation. So there is no other conclusion…Trump is deep into a Middle East war. Just my opinion of course.”

Pointing to Trump’s social media posts, attorney George Conway, a top Trump critic, wrote: “Remember this moment. @realDonaldTrump is reveling in the narcisisstic [sic] and sadistic thrill of threatening others with violent death. He will start to crave that feeling.”

The Bulwark’s Sam Stein, also pointing to Trump’s posts, observed, “Just tweeting through the launch of another Middle East war. Treating the potential bombing of Iran by the U.S. as an episode of reality TV.”

Former Obama National Security Council staffer Tommy Vietor said of Trump’s posts, “The President of the United States can’t say s— like this and then pretend we are not an active participant in this war.”

Trump convened a meeting with his National Security Council (NSC), slated for 1 PM in the Situation Room. Notably, Vice President JD Vance, who ran defense hours earlier for Trump over the possibility of entering the war, was reportedly not in attendance.

“U.S. officials said Trump is seriously considering joining the war and launching a U.S. strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, especially its underground uranium enrichment facility in Fordow,” Axios reported.

Former Obama chief campaign strategist and Senior Advisor to the President, David Axelrod, laid out the scene:

“Amazing that in a matter of days we’ve gone from ‘this is not our operation’ to ‘we own the skies over Iran.’ With these proclamations, we also now ‘own’ what WAS an Israeli assault. We’re thoroughly in it now. What is the strategy here?”

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CNN reports that “President Donald Trump is growing increasingly warm to using US military assets to strike Iranian nuclear facilities and souring on the idea of a diplomatic solution to end Tehran’s escalating conflict with Israel, two officials familiar with the ongoing discussions told CNN.”

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren noted that Congress, not the President, has the authority to declare war:

“Allowing Netanyahu to drag us into another endless war in the Middle East would be a catastrophic error by President Trump and Republicans in Congress. Every lawmaker needs to ring the alarm against U.S. military action in Iran. Only Congress has the authority to declare war.”

Many, including BBC Verify senior journalist Shayan Sardarizadeh, are pointing to Trump’s use of the word “we” in his posts. Military.com’s Pentagon reporter Konstantin Toropin suggested it would be difficult to not see the U.S. as involved.

“President Trump is using the term ‘we’ when referring to Israeli attacks on Iran, including a potential strike on the supreme leader, and calling for ‘unconditional surrender,” Sardarizadeh wrote.

“…and yet the US is not a participant in this conflict?” posited Toropin.

Pointing to polling that shows 60% of Americans oppose U.S. military becoming involved in the Israel-Iran war, former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul wrote: “If Trump is serious about bombing Iran, he’d be wise to declassify intelligence showing that the threat of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon is imminent. The American people are not just going to take him at his word. Been there; done that (in 2003).”

Former Clinton Cabinet Secretary Robert Reich noted, “For Trump, a military conflict with Iran would distract from:
-Sinking poll numbers
-A devastating (and unpopular) budget bill
-Harmful trade wars
-Unleashing the military on American soil
-Millions of people protesting his authoritarianism
We must remain on high alert.”

U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) wrote: “Having seen some of the worst fighting of the Iraq War, I know the devastating toll of rushing into a conflict. I came back from Iraq angry at our government for sending us out to an illegal war. We must learn from our mistakes: no president should unilaterally deploy troops to the Middle East. Congress, not the President, has the sole power to declare war.

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A former viewer of Jake Tapper’s CNN program, expressing deep disappointment, publicly criticized the veteran journalist for publishing a book that portrays President Joe Biden in an unflattering light and alleges cognitive decline. The viewer argued that Tapper should instead be scrutinizing what she described as the “erratic” behavior of President Donald Trump. Tapper defended his stance, attributing Trump’s behavior more to “personality” traits than to “cognitive decline.”

On a C-SPAN call-in show (video below), the viewer, identified by the name “Sarah,” told Tapper, “right now, I really don’t like you.”

She accused Tapper of doing a “disservice” to President Biden, “and also to the American people.”

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“When are you going to examine, you know, what is going on with Trump?” she asked.

“Joe Biden conducted himself for four years, taking care of the United States. He took meetings, he went overseas, he negotiated with other leaders.”

But President Trump, Sarah said, “has been pure chaos, which indicates to me that there is something wrong with him.”

“We will never get a straight answer on his medical examination. What medication he is on,” she charged.

She also accused Tapper of going after President Biden “with a vengeance,” and expressed that she is “very disappointed” in the reporter.

“I enjoyed watching your show, but not anymore,” she added.

The caller urged Tapper to write another book, focused on President Trump, “and how erratic and what he is doing—calling out the National Guard, the Marines and everybody. When has a President ever done that? It is pure erratic.”

Tapper, who sat through the 75-seconds of criticism largely stone-faced, responded by saying that on CNN he does cover President Donald Trump “every day for two hours, every day from 5 to 7 Eastern.”

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He insisted that they “cover all the things you talk about, in terms of the president, the current president’s behavior. We have covered times that he has confused Nancy Pelosi with Nikki Haley.”

But Tapper appeared to disagree with Sarah’s perception that “there is something wrong” with President Trump. Despite his age (79) and reported lifestyle, Tapper insisted, “I think some of the questions about President Trump’s behavior have more to do with personality than with cognitive decline.”

“But obviously,” he continued, “whatever lessons we’ve learned from covering President Biden, we would apply to any politician, any future politician or present politician.”

So I’m sorry, if I’m disappointing you by covering President Biden, but journalists, we are supposed to cover stories that we think the American people have a right to know, that we think will enhance their understanding of how the country’s run, and I think Alex and I are proud of this book.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

C-SPAN caller to Jake Tapper: “Right now I really don’t like you … When are you going to examine what’s going on with Trump? … this president has been pure chaos, which indicates to me that there is something wrong with him. We will never get a straight answer on his medical… pic.twitter.com/juTOEOOL6z

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) June 17, 2025

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Just days ago, President Donald Trump suggested that his administration would stop targeting undocumented immigrants working in essential sectors like agriculture and hospitality for detention and deportation—proclaiming, “Changes are coming!”

President Trump, in his social media post on Thursday, had said that many undocumented farm workers are “very good, long time workers,” who are “almost impossible to replace.”  He added: “We must protect our Farmers.”

Reports suggest Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins was behind the effort to convince Trump to carve out an exemption from detention and deportation for agriculture and hospitality workers.

But on Monday, the pause on immigration sweeps at farms, hotels, and restaurants, was swiftly ended.

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“Officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including its Homeland Security Investigations division, told agency leaders in a call Monday that agents must continue conducting immigration raids at agricultural businesses, hotels and restaurants,” The Washington Post reported. And specifically, “ICE agents have been told to continue conducting enforcement operations at agricultural businesses despite concerns about negative effects on the food industry.”

A Trump Department of Homeland Security official said, “Worksite enforcement remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard public safety, national security and economic stability.”

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, the architect of the White House’s child and family separation policy during the first Trump term, has demanded agents step up arrests to 3,000 per day, even though ICE is currently $1 billion over budget.

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On Sunday night, President Trump announced a new crackdown targeting undocumented immigrants exclusively in Democratic-led strongholds, declaring that blue cities “are the core of the Democrat Power Center.”

Claiming that ICE agents every day face “threats from Radical Democrat Politicians,” he announced “the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History,” before baselessly claiming voter fraud.

But support for Trump’s highly-controversial immigration policies is weakening, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll: 49% disapprove, 44% approve.

“Polling overwhelming shows strong support for providing a path to permanent legal status for America’s farmworkers,” wrote attorney Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, on Monday. “In fact, not a single poll shows majority support for deporting them.”

Critics of the new policy, which includes targeting farm, hotel, and restaurant workers for deportation, are blasting the Trump administration.

“Stephen Miller gets his way,” Reichlin-Melnick noted. “Just a few days after Ag. Sec. Rollins convinced Trump to briefly back down, the quotas and indiscriminate raids are back. Farms, restaurants, and hotels are now subject to ICE raids again, with intense pressure on ICE to hit 3,000 arrests a day.”

Dean Baker, a senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, responded, “That’s what happens when we have a reality TV show star as president. Who are we deporting? Find out after this commercial. What’s the tariff on country X, stay tuned. And which country are we bombing? Just keep watching!”

The United Farm Workers Union blasted the decision, and, like many on social media, questioned who’s making decisions in the White House:

“A ‘shift’ never happened. A chaotic raid at a worksite and a warrantless sweep in our communities have the same outcome. B——- rhetoric aside, they’re hunting us down while we’re trying to feed you. Who’s actually in charge?”

California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, responding to The Washington Post’s report, wrote: “Looks like Stephen Miller is the boss, after all.”

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This article has been updated to include remarks from Gov. Newsom

Image via Reuters