Within less than 12 hours President Donald Trump threatened Iran over its downing of an unmanned, $130 million U.S. Military surveillance drone, backtracked, saying on national television he believed a rogue Iranian military official made a “mistake” in downing the Navy RQ-4 Global Hawk, ordered a retaliatory strike against Iran, and then called it off.
Thursday evening, as late as 7 PM ET, U.S. Military planes and ships were in the beginning stages of an operation to strike against Iran, as The New York Times reports.
There were “intense discussions and debate at the White House among the president’s top national security officials and congressional leaders.”
“Secretary of State Mike Pompeo; John R. Bolton, the national security adviser; and Gina Haspel, the C.I.A. director, had favored a military response. But top Pentagon officials cautioned that such an action could result in a spiraling escalation with risks for American forces in the region,” the Times reports.
UPDATE: 12:33 AM ET –
In a disturbing revelation, a CNN Senior National Correspondent focusing on National Security reports what appears to be a White House out of control, and a Commander-in-Chief not in charge.
This is a breaking news and developing story. Details may change. This story will be updated, and NCRM will likely publish follow-up stories on this news. Stay tuned and refresh for updates.