The key facts

  • Trump agreed with Vance: the war with Iran largely explains the Republicans' defeat in the November 3 midterm elections.
  • The president linked the loss to a temporary rise in gasoline prices but called the operation 'the only answer' in the long run.
  • Vance also cited inflation and relations with Israel among the causes; projections show Democrats winning majorities in both chambers.

Trump agreed with Vance's assessment

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday, November 4, acknowledged as justified Vice President JD Vance's statement that the conflict with Iran was the main reason for the Republican Party's defeat in the midterm congressional elections. This was reported by the Anadolu agency; Trump's remarks were also noted by Gazeta.Ru citing Fox News and Life.ru. Answering a journalist's question at the White House, Trump said: 'I think for the most part it's true, because it [the war with Iran] briefly raised gasoline prices, and that's probably the reason.'

'If I had the chance to do it again'

At the same time, Trump stressed that he would not change his decision to launch the military operation. 'If I had the chance to do it again, I would have to do the same thing,' Gazeta.Ru quoted him as saying. According to Anadolu, the president said that in the long run the military action was 'the only answer,' since Iran must not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons; asked whether the conflict was worth the political and economic costs, he answered in the affirmative, adding that the country 'had no choice.'

What Vance and other participants said

Earlier, Vance called the military operation against Iran the main factor in the Republicans' defeat, which cost the party majorities in both chambers of Congress, and stated that the discussion of the party's further strategy should begin with acknowledging this cause. Among other reasons, he also cited rising inflation and relations with Israel. In the midterm elections on November 3, Americans elected all 435 members of the House of Representatives and 35 senators; according to preliminary projections, the Democrats will win majorities in both chambers, and the new Congress will take office in January 2027 (data from Life.ru). Earlier, Iran's leader urged not to expect relations with the US to change after the elections, and on November 1 The Guardian wrote that Russian President Vladimir Putin could help settle the war with Iran in exchange for concessions on Ukraine — this information comes from media summaries and remains those outlets' assessments.