President Trump exploded in anger at Vice President Vance after he told ABC that Iran's nuclear program was only 'set back significantly,' refusing to echo Trump's line that it was 'totally destroyed,' according to an unreleased book by journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. The next day Vance corrected himself, repeating 'destroyed' ten times.
A forthcoming book by veteran New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan describes a furious confrontation between President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance over the administration's public framing of the Iran nuclear threat, according to a report by journalist Daniel Amram citing the book.
The incident, reported by the Politico news site and cited by Amram, centers on a telephone call in which Trump screamed at Vance after the vice president told ABC News that Iran's nuclear program had been 'set back significantly,' refusing to use the word 'destroyed.' Trump is quoted as shouting: 'Everyone needs to say destroyed … that's the word. Everyone just needs to copy what I'm saying. Destroyed. Destroyed.' The following day, Vance corrected himself in public remarks and repeated the word 'destroyed' ten times.
The exchange, which The Zioneer first reported in a bulletin earlier today, underscores a deeper internal administration tension over how to characterize the results of U.S. operations against Iran's nuclear infrastructure. In recent weeks, Vance himself publicly stated that Iran's nuclear program had been 'destroyed' and that Tehran retained no enrichment capability — a shift that aligns with Trump's demand. The book has not been officially released and the full context of the call has not been independently corroborated.
2 developments
- DevelopingTrump, angered, says Iran is 'stalling' nuclear deal, threatens immediate attack
- DevelopingVance: Iran's nuclear program destroyed, no enrichment capability left
- ConfirmedTrump jokes he will blame VP Vance if Iran deal fails
- DevelopingWhite House sources: Trump furious his strikes on Iran are seen as insufficient
Source and signal
A single-sourced dispatch is never rated Confirmed or Strong. Its Signal strengthens only when a second, independent source corroborates it.
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