Trump says Iran conflict is ‘going to be ended soon,’ threatens further military action if oil supply is squeezed

President Donald Trump said he expects the conflict in Iran will be “ended soon” at a press conference Monday but warned of further military action if oil supplies are disrupted. 

Trump addressed the conflict extensively on Monday, while also touching on Cuba, Russia, and domestic priorities including the SAVE America Act, in a wide-ranging conference attended by The Lion and other outlets.

“We’re winning very decisively. We’re way ahead of schedule,” Trump said of Operation Epic Fury, a joint U.S.-Israel campaign to target Iranian military infrastructure and leaders. He added that Iran is a “very powerful country” that would have taken over the Middle East if the U.S. hadn’t taken action.

Trump praised the operation’s quick success despite what he expects to be a short-term oil price spike, warning Iran that any oil blockage attempts would come at an “incalculable” price. 

“We’re also focused on keeping energy and oil flowing to the world, and I will not allow a terrorist regime to hold the world hostage and attempt to stop the globe’s oil supply,” Trump said. “If Iran does anything to do that, they’ll get hit at a much, much harder level.”

With the threat of the Iranian regime removed, Trump argued, oil and gas will be more secure and cheaper for American families in the future.

“In the long run, oil supplies will be dramatically more secure without the threat of Iranian ships, drones, missiles, nuclear menace,” he said. “We will hit them so hard that it will not be possible for them or anybody else helping them to ever recover that section of the world if they do anything.”

When asked about whether Vice President J.D. Vance agreed with the military action against Iran, Trump said Vance is “philosophically a little bit different than me. I think he was maybe less enthusiastic about going, but he was quite enthusiastic. I felt it was something we had to do.”

The president was also asked about his call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which he said focused on the war in Ukraine. 

It’s “just a never-ending fight,” he said. “There’s tremendous hatred between President Putin and President Zelenskyy; they can’t seem to get it together. But I think it was a positive call on that subject.”

Turning his sights to the western hemisphere, Trump said Cuba is in “deep trouble” on a humanitarian basis. 

“It may be a friendly takeover, it may not be a friendly takeover,” he said of U.S. ambitions. “It wouldn’t matter, because they’re down to, as they say, fumes. They have no energy; they have no money.” 

Domestically, Trump was asked about his recent threat not to sign any legislation that crosses his desk until the Senate passes the SAVE America Act, which would require voter ID and proof of citizenship at the polls. While he didn’t answer if he would even block legislation to confirm his new pick for Homeland Security secretary or funding for DHS, Trump took the moment to praise voter ID requirements.

“We want to be able to see that the voter is legitimate. We want, very importantly, confirmation that this voter is a citizen of the United States of America. And we want no mail in ballot scams,” he said, noting there would be exceptions for the military, sick, disabled and travelers. 

Despite polling indicating voter ID is broadly popular with the public, Democratic leadership has vowed to block the Save America Act, comparing it to “Jim Crow 2.0.”

“It would disenfranchise tens of millions of people,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X. “Senate Democrats will not help pass the SAVE Act under any circumstances.”

Trump accused Democratic leaders of wanting “to cheat” and said Republicans will have to “fight like hell” to get the legislation passed.

In remarks to GOP lawmakers ahead of the press conference, Trump said the SAVE America Act should be the “No. 1 priority.”

“It will guarantee the midterms,” Trump told the lawmakers, who are gathered in Doral, Florida for an annual legislative retreat “If you don’t get it, big trouble, my opinion.”