President Donald Trump speaks to the press near the construction site of his proposed ballroom at the White House in Washington, May 19, 2026.
Kent Nishimura | Afp | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said he was “an hour away” from deciding on Tuesday whether to attack Iran before he was convinced to do so. postpone the strike for a few days.
“We were all ready to go…It should have happened by now,” Trump told reporters Tuesday at the White House when asked if he was close to ordering the attack, which would have formally ended the fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran, which theoretically remains in place.
Trump said in a Truth on social media On Monday afternoon, he delayed an unannounced strike planned for Tuesday because several Middle Eastern leaders had asked him to “desist” in light of ongoing discussions with Iran.
Before Trump’s message, there was no clear indication that the United States was preparing to strike Iran on Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal reported that Gulf officials from some of the countries Trump mentioned said they not aware of the imminent plan of attack against Iran.
Trump himself later said in his Tuesday remarks: “I didn’t tell them.”
Read more about CNBC’s politics coverage“I never told anyone when, but they knew we were very close,” he said. “I would say we were, I was an hour away from making the decision to go today.”
He then said: “I had made the decision. So they called, they had heard that I had made the decision and they said, ‘Sir, could you give us a few more days?’ Because we think they’re reasonable.”
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth was in Kentucky campaign against Rep. Thomas MassieR-Ky., Monday.
When asked how long he had left for Iran to come to the negotiating table, Trump said it could be two or three days, or perhaps until Sunday or early next week. “A limited period of time, because we cannot let them have nuclear weapons,” he said.
The war appears stuck in an uneasy stalemate for weeks, as a ceasefire remains in effect but both sides continue to fight for control of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil transportation.
Trump has repeatedly threatened further military action against Iran, only to delay the deadlines he had set for himself.
The war, which began on Feb. 28 and lasted far longer than the Trump administration’s original four-to-six-week timetable, is viewed negatively by a growing majority of Americans, according to recent polls.
A New York Times-Siena Poll According to a report released Monday, 31% of registered American voters approve of Trump’s handling of the Iran war, while 65% disapprove, with most disapprovers saying they “strongly disapprove.”
Trump said Tuesday that he believes people who understand the administration’s goals support the operations.
“Everyone tells me it’s unpopular, but I think it’s very popular when they hear it has to do with nuclear weapons, weapons that could destroy Los Angeles or big cities,” he said.
“When we explain it to people, I don’t really have enough time to explain it to them, I’m too busy doing it. When they understand, I think it’s honestly very popular,” he said. “But whether it’s popular or not, I have to do it.”
