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Donald Trump says ‘maybe I’ll have to’ destroy the rest of Iran in new war threat

November 6, 2026

President Donald Trump renewed his threats to Iran Thursday, claiming that he might have to destroy the rest of Iran during a surprise press conference

President Donald Trump has renewed his threats to destroy Iran, this time floating fully obliterating the country, during a surprise press briefing in the Oval Office on Thursday.

While speaking to members of the press after declaring the Oval Office and Cabinet Room a national monument, Trump said he’d “rather not destroy the rest of the country if possible, but maybe I’ll have to. You’ll know soon enough.” The commander in chief added that the military was building more weapons than it’s ever built before, adding that forces are “locked and loaded if we have to do the rest of the Iran thing.”

Accroding to Trump, the U.S. had achieved tremendous success with its blockade and controlled the Strait of Hormuz. He also claimed it would take Iran 25 years to rebuild.

The renewed threats came just days after the president threatened to give Iran “the hammer” during a midterm campaign rally in Iowa on Sunday. “The only reason why I’m not finished with Iran is I want to be nice,” the president said.

“I want to try and save all those lives if I can,” Trump told supporters at the rally. “But at some point we’re going to have to give them the hammer.”

Trump on Iran: "I would rather not destroy the rest of the country if possible, but maybe I'll have to" pic.twitter.com/XcfORPpvmd

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 5, 2026

Trump had previously said that the U.S. still had targets to strike in Iran, which suggests that military action could be imminent. He specifically mentioned Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected underground nuclear facility, located in Iran’s Isfahan province.

Meanwhile, at the beginning of the month, prominent conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson invoked panic when he made a stark prediction that the president may carry out an alleged nuclear strike as early as Nov. 7. Carlson, who was once a staunch Trump ally who later turned away from MAGA, claimed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was attempting to push Trump and his administration to use a nuclear weapon in the war in Iran.

“Under pressure from Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Trump administration may be within days of launching a nuclear strike on Iran,” Carlson wrote. “The target would be Pickax Mountain in central Iran, where Israeli intelligence claims the Iranian government has restarted its nuclear enrichment program.”

“No conventional weapon in the American arsenal can penetrate 300 feet of solid granite to destroy the tunnels where enrichment is supposedly taking place,” he added. “The only military option is a nuclear strike. Netanyahu has been pushing hard for one. ‘Bibi calls Trump about it every day,’ says an informed observer.”

Trump: "If we have to the rest of the Iran thing, we're very much locked and loaded" pic.twitter.com/mdv985QFCN

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 5, 2026

According to Carlson, one reason for Netanyahu’s “desperation” is because of the recent Israeli elections, in which his party lost its parliamentary majority.

Carlson believed he “must stay close to Trump” and “needs this war” in the hope the president intervenes in Israeli politics and brokers a deal with other parties to give Netanyahu power.