As US President Donald Trump considers direct intervention in the Israeli-Iranian conflict, a new war has broken out in Washington, according to the Guardian - between conservative hawks, who are calling for immediate US strikes on Iranian uranium enrichment facilities, and isolationist Maga, who are demanding that Trump remain true to his campaign promise not to drag the US into new wars abroad.
After Israel practically established control over Iranian airspace, the way was open for it to continue and expand the bombing, but, according to experts, it will face difficulties in delivering a decisive blow to deeply buried nuclear facilities unless the US joins the attack.
Of particular concern is the mountain fortress that houses the Fordow fuel enrichment facility, which is crucial for uranium enrichment and is located 80 to 90 meters underground, and which Israeli aircraft cannot directly hit.
A direct attack would require massive American bunker-buster bombs, which can only be carried by American B-2 stealth bombers, making Washington's involvement a major goal for Israeli officials.
The Wall Street Journal earlier this week wrote in an editorial that if Trump does not help with Ford, Israel will need more time to achieve its strategic goals. “US neutrality means a longer war.”
Over the weekend, the US began moving tanker planes to Europe for refueling and ordered the deployment of a second aircraft carrier group to the Middle East, which experts said was part of the preparations that would be necessary for an attack, the Guardian reports.
“Trump is assembling the forces needed to attack Fordow,” wrote Daniel Shapiro, a former Pentagon official for Middle East affairs and former U.S. ambassador to Israel. “Air tankers, fighter jets, and a second aircraft carrier. That doesn’t mean he’s already decided to attack, but he’s giving himself the option. Could he use that as leverage to force a major concession from Iran that would make an attack unnecessary?” Shapiro said.
Senior White House officials told US media that refueling planes and other assets were sent to Europe to be deployed closer to the Middle East and to give Trump "more options."
As US forces move into the region, Trump has increased pressure on the Iranian government to reach an agreement and reiterated that "Iran must not have a nuclear weapon."
But the escalation of the conflict - and America's possible role in it - has already caused divisions among Trump's vocal supporters, writes The Guardian, adding that some of his most powerful allies, including Vice President J.D. Vance, have called for the US to refrain from sending troops to wars abroad. Influential commentators such as Tucker Carlson have condemned the possibility of American involvement in a war with Iran.
Speaking on a podcast, Carlson called other media figures "warmongers" and said that description "includes anyone today who is calling on Donald Trump to order airstrikes and direct US military involvement in a war with Iran."
Trump took to social media to hit back at Carlson, an influential ally who played a key role in popularizing the "America First" platform. "Someone please explain to crazy Tucker Carlson that Iran should never have a nuclear weapon," Trump said.
The rift within Trump’s camp extends to the Pentagon. Elbridge Colby, the deputy secretary of defense for policy, is one of the most prominent representatives of the “prioritizers” group who have hoped the United States would shift resources from Europe and the Middle East to the growing threat from China. The Pentagon has denied that there is any disagreement within the department about the policy.
The Guardian's sources claim that traditional Republicans like Senator Tom Cotton, as well as senior Pentagon officials like General Michael Eric Kurila of Central Command, are convincing Trump of the need for a tougher policy towards Iran.
Kurila is considered particularly influential in pushing for “Operation Rough Rider,” the seven-week US campaign against the Houthis, which ended abruptly after spending more than a billion dollars, thousands of bombs and missiles, seven drones shot down, and two fighter jets that sank after falling from a carrier.
When asked if US Central Command was prepared to “respond with overwhelming force to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon,” Kurila replied: “Yes... I have presented a broad range of options to the Secretary of Defense and the President.”
As Trump hurriedly returned from Canada, from the G7 summit, to an emergency meeting of the National Security Council in Washington, the possibility of an American strike on Iran seemed greater than at any time since the beginning of the crisis, the British newspaper points out.
"What's happening is that some in the isolationist movement, led by Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon, are upset that we might be helping the Israelis defeat the Iranians," Mitch McConnell, the former Senate Republican leader, told CNN. "I would say this has been a bad week for isolationists."
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