Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard pushed back on any speculation that she and President Donald Trump are on different pages regarding Iran and its nuclear weapons program.
"President Trump was saying the same thing that I said in my annual threat assessment back in March in Congress. Unfortunately, too many people in the media don't care to actually read what I said," Gabbard told reporters on Capitol Hill Tuesday morning. "We are on the same page," she added prior to an appearance before the Senate Appropriations Committee.
In the midst of the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, Trump was asked about Gabbard's congressional testimony in March by reporters Tuesday morning aboard Air Force One. "I don't care what she said. I think they were very close to having one," Trump answered back.
Earlier in the year, Gabbard testified before Congress that the intelligence community "continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon, and Supreme Leader Khomeini has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003." She added, "The IC continue to monitor closely if Tehran decides to reauthorize its nuclear weapons program."
Gabbard continued, "In the past year, we have seen an erosion of a decadeslong taboo in Iran on discussing nuclear weapons in public, likely emboldening nuclear weapons advocates within Iran's decision-making apparatus. Iran's enriched uranium stockpile is at its highest levels and is unprecedented for a state without nuclear weapons."
The White House published a series of statements on Tuesday to back up the president's stance that Iran "cannot have a nuclear weapon" amid growing backlash from the anti-foreign intervention wing of Trump's MAGA-base.
The Trump administration has been pushing for a diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear program giving them a 60-day notice in April to accept a proposed agreement to curtail their enrichment of uranium.
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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