For the first time in 50 years, America's immigrant population is shrinking, thanks to President Trump's hardline policies.
It makes for a stunning reversal after a historic Biden-era influx that drove the foreign-born population to its highest level ever.
As reported by the Washington Post, the immigrant population is heading for a net loss for the first time in half a century, owing to a stark drop in border crossings and other pathways to entry being closed off.
Immigration advocates warn that a decline in the immigrant population could have economic downsides, with fewer foreign laborers paying taxes and performing low-skill jobs that Americans supposedly refuse to do. But to the millions of Americans who support Trump's deportation drive, this new trend is an encouraging sign that America is finally regaining control of its borders after years of uncontrolled mass immigration.
The Trump administration dismisses the gloomy predictions of economists, citing the "untapped potential" of Americans forced to the sidelined by an influx of cheap foreign labor.
"There is no shortage of American minds and hands to grow our labor force, and President Trump’s agenda to create jobs for American workers represents this Administration’s commitment to capitalizing on that untapped potential while delivering on our mandate to enforce our immigration laws," White House spokesman Kush Desai said.
Under Trump's predecessor, millions of aliens poured across America's borders, bringing the foreign-born share of the workforce to a record 19%. But after just five months of Trump's polices, the trend is reversing.
The prediction comes from a forthcoming policy paper authored by two Washington think tanks, the left-leaning Brookings Institution and conservative American Enterprise Institute.
“For the year as a whole, we think it’s likely [immigration] will be negative,” said Wendy Edelberg, of the Brookings Institution. "It certainly would be the first time in more than 50 years.”
Within weeks of entering the White House for the second time, Trump sealed the border, sending crossings dropping to historic lows. Trump also shut down so-called legal pathways that the Biden administration tapped to flood the country, like a "humanitarian parole" program that admitted 500,000 people from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has ramped up interior enforcement at worksites in order to reach Trump's ambitious deportation targets, with officials calling for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to make 3,000 arrests a day.
Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown sparked a violent backlash this month in majority-minority Los Angeles, as rioters attacked police with bricks and waved Mexican flags. Roughly a third of the population in the Democratic city is foreign-born.
In a reversal, Trump ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to resume enforcement in farming and hospitality, industries that disproportionately hire illegal aliens. The president had faced backlash from his own MAGA base after he backed away from targeting those locations, citing concerns about the economy.
"Worksite enforcement remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard public safety, national security and economic stability," Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said. "These operations target illegal employment networks that undermine American workers, destabilize labor markets and expose critical infrastructure to exploitation."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Not sure exactly where the Constitution has confirmed a government freedom to censor, but that's apparently what a federal judge has discovered, in order to rule that the organization formerly named the Global Engagement Center and assigned to censor Americans must stay alive.
It is the Federalist confirming that while U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the Center Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference Hub, formerly known as the GEC, was dead, a judge said otherwise.
It is Susan Illston, a judge in the leftist enclave of San Francisco, who has, "through the miraculous powers of an activist judge," has said no, the report said.
The organization must remain, she is claiming.
The report described GEC, or R-FIMI under its new name, as "the creepy censorship arm within the Department of State that curtails free speech."
The focal point of the argument, the report said, is "whether the president has the authority to reorganize the federal workplace and trim excess employees or if only unelected local judges have that authority for the entire nation."
Illston also claimed, in taking over responsibilities of the Executive Branch, "If the State Department has any question about whether planned actions fall within the scope of the court's injunction, the court orders the department to first raise those questions with the court before taking action."
Illston's rant comes because of the president's agenda to find and eliminate waste, fraud, corruption and criminal activity in the government's spending programs. He created the Department of Government Efficiency to address the problems.
Illston earlier had used a legal filing from the American Federation of Government Employees and the AFL-CIO to try to destroy Trump plans to save money.
"Rubio made the case that the State Department is not subject to the injunction and planned to move forward with cutting employees and sunsetting R-FIMI, until Illston's order put that on pause," the report said.
The ex-GEC organization was assembled by Barack Obama in 2016 and funded with $50 million a year.
The federal tax dollars it got, "helped grease the wheels of the Russian election interference hoax that marred Trump' first term. The agency was used instead to pressure tech companies to meddle in the 2020 election," the report said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The Supreme Court has shot down a lower court's "bully tactics" that allowed state officials in New York to force religious objectors to pay for abortion.
The decision comes in Diocese of Albany v. Harris, and cited the high court's own earlier decision in Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission.
The issue is leftists in various states keep trying to force religious organizations and others to pay for abortion, which violates the religious rights of people in those groups.
The court's announcement Monday about its decision was brief: "The judgment is vacated, and the case is remanded to the court of appeals for New York for further consideration in light of Catholic Charities Bureau Inc. v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry."
Becket, the organization that was fighting the case on behalf of the religious group members, explained further: "The Supreme Court has ordered New York courts to reconsider Diocese of Albany v. Harris, a case challenging New York's abortion mandate, in light of Becket's unanimous victory in Catholic Charities Bureau v. Wisconsin Labor & Industry Review Commission. In 2017, a group of Catholic and Anglican nuns, Catholic dioceses, Christian churches, and faith-based social ministries challenged New York's mandate forcing them to pay for employees' abortions. After New York courts declined to protect the faith groups, Becket and Jones Day asked the Supreme Court to step in."
It's not the first trip to the high court for the case, Becket noted, "In 2021, the justices reversed the lower courts' rulings and told them to reconsider the case, but the courts ignored that instruction. Now the Supreme Court has ordered the New York courts to go back to the drawing board."
It was the New York State Department of Financial Services that had demanded an abortion mandate for health care plans. At that time, it promised to exempt all employers with religious objections.
"But after facing pressure from abortion activists, New York narrowed the exemption to cover only religious groups that primarily teach religion and primarily serve and hire those who share their faith. This exception does not apply to many religious ministries—including the ministries challenging the mandate here—because they serve all people, regardless of faith," Becket explained.
"For example, the exemption doesn't extend to the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm and their Teresian Nursing Home because they serve the elderly and dying regardless of religious affiliation."
Becket spokesman Eric Baxter noted, "New York wants to browbeat nuns into paying for abortions for the great crime of serving all those in need. For the second time in four years, the Supreme Court has made clear that bully tactics like these have no place in our nation or our law. We are confident that these religious groups will finally be able to care for the most vulnerable, consistent with their beliefs."
"Religious groups in the Empire State should not be forced to provide insurance coverage that violates their deeply held religious beliefs," explained Noel J. Francisco, of Jones Day, which also worked on the case.
President Donald Trump reportedly believes the G7 didn't go far enough against Iran's nuclear program in its resolution, Breitbart reported. The nations participating in the summit were calling for monitoring rather than complete abolition of the program.
Iran has been enriching uranium ostensibly for use in nuclear power. However, the Trump administration believes that the amounts have surpassed what would be needed for that purpose and may be an attempt at a nuclear weapons program.
Recent nonproliferation talks between the U.S. and Iran stalled, which led Israel to launch a preemptive attack on the country Friday. Nations participating in the G7 summit wanted a strongly worded resolution for both sides of that conflict.
However, Trump felt it didn't go far enough to eliminate the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran and refused to agree to put his name behind it, which stunned his fellow Republicans. "I can confirm that he did not sign on to the statement," a senior U.S. official shared.
Israel was already locked in a battle after retaliating against the Iranian-backed terrorist organization Hamas over its attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Now the nation has moved to directly strikingIran in a new war over the prospect of nuclear weapons.
So far, Trump has yet to get the U.S. completely engrossed in Israel's war with Iran, as Reuters reported that the president is not interested in "taking out" Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. However, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz is making no promises.
"I warn the Iranian dictator against continuing to commit war crimes and fire missiles at Israeli citizens," Katz said to his top military officials. Katz believes Khamenei could go the way of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who was executed following the U.S. invasion.
Trump made it clear that the U.S. is tracking Khamenei and knows his whereabouts, though "we are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now," the president assured the world on social media. "Our patience is wearing thin," Trump added as a caveat.
Meanwhile, Iran and Israel continue to lob missiles at one another as Trump decided to leave the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, early. Trump said it had nothing to do with the conflict, but the president was trying to strike a deal with Iran when the war broke out.
In the midst of this turmoil, Vice President J.D. Vance is attempting to shore up Trump's approval of possible invovlement. In a lengthy post to X, formerly Twitter, Vance noted Trump's actions "from the inside" and explained his stance on the conflict.
"First, POTUS has been amazingly consistent, over 10 years, that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," Vance explained. He said Trump drew the line at Iran's enriching uranium and warned "this would happen one of two ways--the easy way or the 'other' way," Vance wrote.
The vice president explained that the amount they've enriched is "far above the level necessary for any civilian purpose" of nuclear power. "They've been found in violation of their non-proliferation obligations by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is hardly a rightwing organization," Vance said.
The vice president said that Trump has given them leeway but may "decide he needs to take further action to end Iranian enrichment," Vance said. "That decision ultimately belongs to the president. And of course, people are right to be worried about foreign entanglement after the last 25 years of idiotic foreign policy," Vance said, assuring the public that Trump will work in the best interests of the U.S.
The situation in the Middle East is getting more dangerous by the day. A nuclear Iran is a frightening prospect, but getting the U.S. involved in yet another costly foreign conflict is a serious matter. It should be soberly weighed against the cost to American lives and treasure.
A federal judge in Boston ruled Monday that President Donald Trump's administration could not make cuts to the National Institutes of Health research grants, NBC News reported. U.S. District Judge William Young said that eliminating research grants for diversity, equity, and inclusion is "void and illegal."
The judge believes that the administration had no authority to cancel the $1 billion in federal research grants. The remedy was to reinstate the grants, which will be returned to the plaintiffs, including organizations and Democrat-led states that initiated the lawsuit.
"This represents racial discrimination and discrimination against America’s LGBTQ community. Any discrimination by our government is so wrong that it requires the court to enjoin it and at an appropriate time, I’m going to do it," Young explained.
Young, whose decision blindsided Trump because he's an appointee of President Ronald Reagan, said that he had "never seen a record where racial discrimination was so palpable" in his 40 years on the bench. "You are bearing down on people of color because of their color. The Constitution will not permit that," the judge added.
Trump and his administration have fought against DEI initiatives precisely because they favor some groups over others in a reverse discrimination. However, Young asserts that objecting to grants that particularly focus on DEI subjects is the source of injustice.
According to Fox News, White House Spokesman Kush Desai believes Young was ruling from his own political viewpoint. "It is appalling that a federal judge would use court proceedings to express his political views and preferences," Desai said in a statement to Fox News.
"How is a judge going to deliver an impartial decision when he explicitly stated his biased opinion that the Administration’s retraction of illegal DEI funding is racist and anti-LGBTQ? Justice ceases to be administered when a judge clearly rules on the basis of his political ideologies," Desai charged.
Of course, the administration will not take this lying down. HHS Communications Director Andrew Nixon said in a statement that the agency "is exploring all legal options, including filing an appeal and moving to stay the order" in the future.
"HHS stands by its decision to end funding for research that prioritized ideological agendas over scientific rigor and meaningful outcomes for the American people," Nixon said. He added that the agency is "committed to ensuring that taxpayer dollars support programs rooted in evidence-based practices and gold standard science, not driven by divisive DEI mandates or gender ideology."
Trump took on the broader issue of DEI in just about every corner of the government as part of his promised second-term agenda. The president set to work on his first day in office to dismantle DEI, as evidenced by a White House action on January 20.
As the release noted, "nearly every Federal agency and entity submitted 'Equity Action Plans' to detail the ways that they have furthered DEIs infiltration of the Federal Government" under then-President Joe Biden. The Trump administration called this "immense public waste and shameful discrimination," the declaration said.
"That ends today. Americans deserve a government committed to serving every person with equal dignity and respect, and to expending precious taxpayer resources only on making America great," the White House added.
Trump is committed to ensuring that there is no preferential treatment in the distribution of money or resources in the United States. He has been accused of being the one perpetuating discrimination when really, he's the one reversing it by dispensing with these policies.
There's no reason any group should receive anything over another simply by virtue of some arbitrarily chosen characteristics of that group. Young was wrong to blame Trump, but this speaks to a sickness in government brought on by wokeism.
As part of its ongoing military effort to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, Israel has specifically and successfully targeted the Islamist regime's top military leaders and nuclear scientists.
On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Force claimed that an Israeli airstrike had taken out Iranian Maj.-Gen. Ali Shademani, the regime's new "wartime chief of staff," according to Politico.
Shademani, reportedly the highest-ranking member in Iran's military and a top advisor to Ayatollah Khamenei, had just recently ascended to the chief of staff role after his predecessor, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, was similarly killed by an Israeli airstrike on Friday, the first day of the conflict.
In an early morning X post on Tuesday, the IDF said, "For the second time in 5 days -- the IDF has eliminated Iran’s War-Time Chief of Staff, the regime’s top military commander."
"Ali Shadmani, Iran’s senior-most military official and Khamenei’s closest military advisor, was killed in an IAF strike in central Tehran, following precise intelligence," the Israeli military added.
Politico reported that Shademani's death was just the latest in a series of successful Israeli strikes since Friday that have resulted in the elimination of the top figures in charge of Iran's military and nuclear programs.
On the first day of what has been dubbed "Operation Rising Lion," the IDF announced in a press release that it had successfully targeted and killed via airstrikes the "three most senior military commanders of the Iranian regime."
That included the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Iranian regime, Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, who was the highest-ranking officer in Iran's military, had decision-making authority over Iran's security services, and was in charge of coordinating the regime's various security forces.
Also eliminated was Gen. Hossein Salami, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Maj. Gen. Gholam Ali Rashid, who was in charge of Iran's emergency command system, known as the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters.
The elimination of Shademani will likely have a profound impact on the Iranian regime's ability to defend against and counter Israel's attacks, in large part because he was pulling double duty to cover for the Iranian military's significant losses, according to The Times of Israel.
In addition to succeeding Bagheri as the wartime chief of staff, Shademani had also been picked to replace Rashid as the new head of the emergency command system.
The IDF said that Shademani "commanded both the Revolutionary Guards and the Iranian Armed Forces," and in his role at the central headquarters, "was responsible for managing combat operations and approving Iran’s attack plans." As such, "he had a direct influence on Iran’s offensive plans targeting the State of Israel."
Meanwhile, in a Monday interview with ABC News, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested that a targeted strike to eliminate Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei was under consideration, which, despite what critics say, was "not going to escalate the conflict, it's going to end the conflict."
"The 'forever war' is what Iran wants, and they're bringing us to the brink of nuclear war," he added. "In fact, what Israel is doing is preventing this, bringing an end to this aggression, and we can only do so by standing up to the forces of evil."
President Donald Trump’s abrupt exit from the G7 Summit in Alberta, Canada, signals a no-nonsense focus on America’s security amid escalating Middle East chaos.
He’s ditching the diplomatic dinner’s dessert course to tackle Iran’s nuclear ambitions head-on, Breitbart reported on Monday. This move underscores a leader prioritizing action over pleasantries.
Trump attended productive G7 meetings, inked a major trade deal with the United Kingdom, but left early after dinner with Heads of State due to rising tensions involving Iran and Israel. His departure reflects a strategic pivot to address pressing global threats. The White House insists he accomplished plenty before boarding Air Force One.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt praised Trump’s G7 performance, saying he signed a “major trade deal” with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Her glowing review conveniently sidesteps why Trump rejected the summit’s weak-kneed statement on Iran’s nuclear activities. A pat on the back doesn’t mask the real story: Trump’s fed up with diplomatic dithering.
Trump’s trade focus shone brightly, with Breitbart News noting his emphasis on economic deals during the summit. He met with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, likely hammering out details to boost American interests. The UK trade agreement stands as a win for his “America First” mantra.
“President Trump had a great day at the G7,” Leavitt declared, highlighting the UK deal. Yet, her enthusiasm feels like a distraction from the Middle East firestorm pulling Trump back to Washington. Trade victories are sweet, but they don’t douse Iran’s nuclear flames.
Trump’s early exit was triggered by heightened Middle East tensions, particularly Iran’s provocative nuclear moves. Israel’s recent strike on Iran’s military and nuclear sites sparked a dangerous tit-for-tat. Iran retaliated with missile attacks on Israeli cities, ratcheting up the stakes.
The G7’s response? A milquetoast statement calling for “monitoring” Iran’s nuclear activities. Trump, unsurprisingly, rejected this toothless approach, demanding a harder line to stop Iran’s nuclear program cold. His stance exposes the summit’s failure to grasp the gravity of the threat.
On Truth Social, Trump thundered, “IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON.” His all-caps conviction screams “America First” while slamming the G7’s spineless diplomacy. The man’s not subtle, but subtlety won’t stop a rogue regime’s nuclear dreams.
“Much was accomplished,” Leavitt said, but Trump’s leaving “because of what’s going on in the Middle East.” Her words admit the G7’s trade talks and handshakes couldn’t compete with the urgency of Iran’s aggression. Trump’s bolting for DC to deal with the real world, not summit photo-ops.
Breitbart reported Trump’s outright dismissal of the G7’s Iran statement, which he saw as a feeble wrist-slap. The summit’s call to merely “monitor” Iran’s nuclear activities is diplomatic quicksand—slow, ineffective, and dangerous. Trump’s refusal to play along shows he’s not here for globalist groupthink.
Israel’s preemptive strike on Iran’s sites last week was a bold move, met with Iran’s reckless missile barrage. This isn’t a game of chess; it’s a high-stakes showdown. Trump’s early departure suggests he’s ready to back allies and confront enemies, not just talk about it.
Trump’s “AMERICA FIRST” Truth Social post also screamed, “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!” It’s a rally cry that ties his G7 trade wins to his hardline Iran stance. Critics might call it bombast, but supporters see a leader unafraid to shake up the status quo.
Leavitt’s claim that Trump accomplished “much” at the G7 isn’t wrong—trade deals matter. But the Middle East’s boiling point demands a commander-in-chief who doesn’t linger at summits while missiles fly. Trump’s exit is a calculated move to put America’s safety first.
The G7’s tepid Iran statement proves why Trump’s skepticism of multilateral fluff is justified. Monitoring Iran’s nuclear ambitions sounds nice until you realize it’s code for doing nothing. Trump’s heading home to steer the ship, not rearrange deck chairs.
Trump’s G7 stint was a whirlwind of trade triumphs and a swift exit driven by Middle East realities. He signed a landmark UK deal, rejected a spineless Iran statement, and left Alberta to confront a growing crisis. America’s leader isn’t here to sip wine while Iran plays nuclear roulette.
Vance Boelter, a known Trump supporter, was arrested after being charged with multiple politically motivated shootings around Minneapolis, according to the Daily Mail.
Boelter is accused of the murders of Democratic State Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and the attempted murder of State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette, sparking a massive manhunt following the attacks.
The attacks took place early Saturday with a sequence of violent incidents. The first occurred at Melissa Hortman's home in Champlin, where gunfire was exchanged with law enforcement as Boelter fled the scene. The wreckage of this encounter set the stage for a larger manhunt across the area.
After the initial incident at Hortman's home, Boelter targeted State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette at their residence in Brooklyn Park. The assaults appeared to be fueled by political motivations, as Boelter was subsequently discovered with items linking him to anti-abortion sentiments.
During the intense pursuit, Boelter left behind a significant clue: his abandoned vehicle on Highway 25 in Faxon Township. The vehicle's discovery included rifles, a pistol, ammunition, handmade propaganda flyers, cash, and an ominous hit list targeting advocates of abortion rights.
Among the items recovered from the car was a distinctive cowboy hat, similar to one seen in images taken by the FBI, which led to further suspicions. A bystander at the scene expressed skepticism about the hat's presence, claiming it seemed misplaced and could be misleading.
Boelter's troubling path was marked by an array of security roles that spanned several continents. His tactical knowledge might have facilitated his initial evasion. His history included serving on Minnesota’s Governor’s Workforce Development Board, indicating deep political entrenchment.
His background in security was not the only aspect under scrutiny. His connections with Republican circles were well-known, as confirmed by statements from his former roommate, David Carlson. "He was an avid Trump supporter and voted for the Republican candidate," Carlson said, showcasing Boelter's political alignment.
In a past church service video, Boelter had delivered a testimony about his Christian faith. Despite this outward religious devotion, his alleged actions contradicted these teachings, undoing the image he projected months prior.
The shootings rocked local communities, with law enforcement and political figures rallying to condemn the violence. "Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America," remarked former President Donald Trump following a briefing on the incident.
Local residents experienced firsthand the tensions that escalated with the events. Brian Liebhard, a farmer residing in the impacted area, acknowledged hearing gunshots on the night before police intervention. Though he could not attribute the sounds to the attacks, it fueled speculation among the community.
Amid the investigation, Boelter's family also came under limited suspicion. His wife, Jenny, was initially stopped by police for reviewing suspicious items, though ultimately released without charges. The event added another layer of complexity to an already convoluted case.
Hortman, known for her legislative efforts, once expressed her dedication to representing all communities, emphasizing the importance of inclusion within her policy work. "The most rewarding piece of legislation we passed - for me - is paid family and medical leave," she stated in a previous interview.
Her words, following the tragedy, represented a stark contrast to the chaos that unfolded. Encouraging unity across communities, she emphasized not limiting party representation to urban areas but including agricultural regions as well.
President Trump is receiving some surprising praise from an elected Democrat... over something that Trump says he did not do.
Florida Rep. Jared Moskowitz said Trump made the right call by allowing Israel's surprise attack against Iran to "go forward," even though Trump has denied any such involvement.
The White House has stressed Israel's independence, and Trump has said he had no role in the strikes, which came despite his goal of negotiating a nuclear deal with Iran.
The latest round of talks was cancelled Sunday after Israel's attack, which Trump had publicly opposed.
Moskowitz argued that Trump effectively co-signed the strikes by failing to stop Israel - a sentiment that has also been shared by certain "America First" critics of Trump's on the right.
"I have vast disagreements, obviously, with President Trump, but, obviously, we had some knowledge that this was going to happen, probably could have stopped it, U.S. presidents have that ability. President Trump let it go forward, and he got it right," Moskowitz told Fox News' Jesse Watters Primetime.
The strikes have opened up a divide on the right between "America First" populists and hawkish Republicans who have expressed support for Israel and its military aims.
While non-interventionists are wary of U.S. entanglement, Iran hawks in both parties claim that Israel is doing what's necessary to stop Iran from getting a nuclear bomb.
"This President decided to let the Israelis finally start dismantling that program because the Iranians chose not to do that themselves," Moskowitz said.
"For administration [after] administration after administration, we have been trying to delay this day, delay what now is inevitable, which was that there was intelligence that Iran…was near getting a nuclear weapon," Moskowitz said. "And so, this, unfortunately, was Iran’s choice."
Trump has been a little ambiguous about America's role in the conflict.
While he has called for peace, he also hasn't ruled out the possibility of America getting involved in the future - and he has stressed to critics like Tucker Carlson that there can't be peace if Iran gets a nuclear bomb.
“For those people who say they want peace—you can’t have peace if Iran has a nuclear weapon. So for all of those wonderful people who don’t want to do anything about Iran having a nuclear weapon—that’s not peace," Trump told The Atlantic.
According to reports, Trump overruled an Israeli plan to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
President Trump shut down a request from Israel to assassinate the top leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
As reported by Reuters, Israel was prepared to strike before Trump vetoed the plan over worries about a widening conflict.
Trump's intervention stopped what would have been a dramatic escalation in an Israeli campaign targeting Iran's regime.
Israel's strikes began early Friday as a surprise attack on Iran's nuclear program that eliminated scientists and top military officials.
But Israel has hinted the strikes could expand and result in regime change, a goal long sought by hawks in the GOP.
"Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do we’re not even talking about going after the political leadership,” an official told Reuters.
In a Fox News interview Sunday, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dodged questions about the plan to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader.
"But I can tell you, I think that we do what we need to do, we'll do what we need to do. And I think the United States knows what is good for the United States," Netanyahu said.
An end to the theocratic regime in Tehran "could certainly be the result” of the conflict “because the Iranian regime is very weak," he added.
Netanyahu's goals have created tension with the White House, while driving a divide within Trump's MAGA movement.
On one side are "America First" populists who argue that Trump must keep the U.S. out of a potentially disastrous conflict, while hawkish Republicans have said Israel is confronting a common threat to the U.S. by targeting Iran's nuclear program.
Trump has said the U.S. was not involved in the strikes, which came despite his diplomatic efforts to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran. Trump has faced criticism from some on the right, such as Tucker Carlson, who suggested Trump is abandoning his "America First" base with his handling of the situation.
The president, who has long taken pride in being a peacemaker, has continued to call for de-escalation, but he has not ruled out the possibility of the U.S. getting involved in the conflict in the future.
“We’re not involved in it. It’s possible we could get involved. But we are not at this moment involved,” Trump told ABC News on Sunday.
"Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Sunday, adding, “We will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran."