President Trump continues to give conflicting messages on the Iran war.
"You never like to say too early you won,” he said during a speech in Kentucky Wednesday. “We won.”
But then, he said, "We don't want to leave early do we? We got to finish the job." On Friday, he said on Fox News Radio that the war would be over, “When I feel it. When I feel it in my bones.”
If you are confused by what all that means for when this war will actually be over, you’re probably not the only one. The end goals and exit strategy for this war aren’t clear. But what is clear — likely to the White House, too — are the dangers of a drawn-out conflict with mounting American casualties.
After two decades of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Americans, including many in Trump’s base, are skeptical of prolonged military involvement overseas. And this week, with the war in Iran raging, the U.S. saw a pair of what appear to be extremist attacks — one at a synagogue in Michigan and one at Old Dominion University in Virginia.
The suspect in Michigan was a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Lebanon, and had family members killed in a March 5 Israeli strike in Lebanon. The alleged gunman in Virginia spent eight years in prison for trying to aid ISIS and yelled "Allahu Akbar" before the shooting, according to the FBI.
Since the terrorist attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, there has been a rise in antisemitic attacks and rhetoric, coming from corners of the political left and right. There’s now also been a rise in Islamophobia coming from Republican candidates and elected officials.
Republicans have spent more than $10 million on political TV ads that mention “Sharia” or “Islam” in a negative way, most of it coming in Texas ahead of the month’s primaries, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact. They’ve formed a new anti-Sharia Law caucus in Congress, and some have taken to social media with fiercelynegative things to say about Muslims, while trafficking in stereotypes and sweeping generalizations about a religion practiced by more than 2 billion people worldwide.
One member said “more” Islamophobia is needed, and that “fear of Islam is rational.”
Would it be rational to apply that same kind of logic to men or white people, because men have made up 9 in 10 mass shooters and sexual abuse offenders, with a majority being white?
This year is the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and much of this feels familiar, with one major difference: GOP leadership. President Trump has been blatant in his anti-Muslim rhetoric. He declared in 2016 that “Islam hates us” and called for a “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.” When he took office in 2017, he acted on that idea, instituting a temporary ban on travelers from seven majority-muslim countries.
When asked about some of the remarks made by members in his conference this week, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., did little to tamp down the rhetoric.
“Look, there’s a lot of energy in the country, and a lot of popular sentiment, that the demand to impose Sharia Law in America is a serious problem,” Johnson said at a House GOP policy retreat at Trump’s Doral resort in Florida. "That’s what animates me.”
Compare that to former President George W. Bush, who just six days after 9/11, went to a mosque, met with Muslim leaders and stressed, “The face of terror is not the true faith of Islam. That's not what Islam is all about. Islam is peace. These terrorists don't represent peace. They represent evil and war.”
And he added: “Those who feel like they can intimidate our fellow citizens to take out their anger don't represent the best of America. They represent the worst of humankind, and they should be ashamed of that kind of behavior.”
Trump threatens to strongarm Congress: President Trump threatened to withhold his signature on all bills until Congress passes stricter federal voting requirements — a move that escalates his efforts to change election rules ahead of the 2026 midterms. In a social media post Sunday, Trump said he won't sign any bills into law until Congress passes the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act. The administration later clarified that this would not apply to Department of Homeland Security funding. If the president does not sign a bill within ten days of it reaching his desk while Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law.
Senate passes rare bipartisan package on housing: The Senate this week passed a bill designed to boost housing supply and make homes more affordable by a vote of 89-10. The largest housing legislation in decades, the bill would ban institutional investors from buying up single-family homes to rent out, with limited exceptions. That idea gained Republican support after President Trump endorsed it earlier this year. Negotiations over changes senators made to the House version are ongoing.
How do swing voters feel about Trump’s war in Iran? NPR talked to 12 of them, who voiced concerns about rising oil prices, the potential for a prolonged engagement and the need to tackle mounting economic pressures at home.
Trump has always been known to put his name on things: But during his second term, that’s extending to government buildings and programs instead of steaks and hotels. Senior White House Correspondent Tamara Keith reports on how the president’s name and likeness are showing up everywhere from the Justice Department to national park passes.
Democrats set a turnout record in Texas, so is this the year it turns blue? Our Domenico Montanaro explores.
Mahmoud Khalil was detained for 104 days: A year later, he now sits at the vanguard of a legal battle over immigrants' due process and civil rights pitted against the Trump administration's mass-detention and deportation policies. He spoke to NPR correspondents Carrie Johnson and Ximena Bustillo about the ongoing legal fight and how his life has changed.
What does it mean to be an American? There’s no single answer. At NPR, we think of American identity as a story, one that’s constantly being rewritten by the people who live it.
The American Storytelling collection brings together stories from local stations across the NPR Network, from small-town struggles to natural wonders to the layered histories that shape our nation. These are some of our biggest little-known shows, all in one place.
Explore the American Storytelling channel on Apple Podcasts or find it in the NPR App.
The Constitution gives Congress alone the power to declare war. But it also says the president is commander in chief. Drawing the line between the two, in practice, has proved complicated and contested.
Congressional reporter Sam Gringlas explains how presidents have expanded their military authority for decades, and why Congress rarely pushes back.
The plaque was quietly installed around 4 a.m. last Saturday, and witnessed by a Washington Post reporter. The first official marker of the violence that day, the plaque was placed steps from the Capitol's West Front and where the worst of the fighting occurred.
