Nebraska congressmen say Trump’s looking for peace in ‘civilization will die’ post

Several members of Nebraska’s federal delegation say President Donald Trump is looking for peace in his recent comments that threatened the livelihoods of people in Iran. He wants to see a deal reached by 7 p.m. Central Time to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

In a social media post Tuesday morning, the president wrote on social media platform Truth Social, “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!”

The Strait of Hormuz has become a large centerpiece of the Iran war, since it’s a major transportation hub, especially for oil. The conflict has greatly disrupted shipping on the waterway, and that’s led to many Nebraskans feeling the effects – from sky-high fertilizer prices for farmers and ballooning gas prices.

The president’s Tuesday post continues a streak in which he’s been ramping up his threats to destroy Iranian infrastructure. On Easter, President Trump sent similar threatening messages to Iran’s regime, writing, “Open the F*****’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”

While the president’s justification for attacking Iran has buoyed between several reasons, the administration says it’s putting pressure on the country in order to get its leaders to wind down its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities.

The U.S. military is continuing to strike the region. The U.S. on Tuesday morning struck Iran’s Kharg Island, according to reporting by NPR. The island is Iran’s oil export on the Persian Gulf, but the U.S. official said the targets were not oil infrastructure but “restrikes” on sites the U.S. has already hit.

Iran’s president said Tuesday morning that he’s willing to die along with millions of Iranians to defend his country.

“More than 14 million proud Iranians have so far registered to sacrifice their lives to defend Iran. I too have been, am, and will remain devoted to giving my life for Iran," Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media.

Three members of Nebraska’s delegation told Nebraska Public Media News on Tuesday that while they don’t necessarily support how the president phrased his message, it’s Trump’s way of negotiating peace.

“It’s his way of threatening the regime to give in to our demands. Threatening the end of a civilization can be interpreted as genocide, and he shouldn’t have used that phrase. But, he is saying it to negotiate a peace. He wants Iran’s IRGC to back down. We want the Persian civilization to blossom again, and it can only do so without the Ayatollahs and Mullahs,” 2nd District Rep. Don Bacon said.

In a statement to Nebraska Public Media News, Sen. Pete Ricketts said he wants to see peace and security for Americans and the world.

“President Trump set a clear objective of ensuring Iran never possesses a nuclear weapon. That goal protects peace and security. No one other than the terrorist regime in Iran wants to see the loss of innocent life. The people of Iran protested for their freedom earlier this year. I hope those brave Iranians can one day live in freedom and security. And I trust that Americans will thrive without the threat of a nuclear Iran,” Ricketts said.

All five members of Nebraska’s federal delegation supported the president’s move to join Israel in attacking Iran. The mission, named Operation Epic Fury, has killed Iranian’s supreme leader and his family. There are investigations underway as to if the strikes also killed dozens of children at an Iranian girls’ elementary school. More than a dozen members of the U.S. military, including one from Bellevue, have been killed.

After the initial attacks, the U.S. House of Representatives considered a resolution that would limit the president’s war powers in the Iran conflict, but House members, including all three of Nebraska’s representatives, voted it down.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, 1st District Rep. Mike Flood said he continues to support the president’s strategy on Iran and destroying its military capabilities.

“I believe this is a country we need to deal with once and for all and deal with what they've done to America,” Flood said. They are hell bent on getting a nuclear weapon, and they are hell bent on using that against their enemies, namely America and Israel. So, I support the president's efforts here. He regularly uses very strong language in his negotiations. I'm led to believe there are good negotiations happening, but to bring a country like this – that has ignored the world community, demanding that they rid themselves of nuclear weapons to this day – this is finally where the rubber meets the road, and let's hope this ends. I pray that it ends exactly as it should.”

Sen. Deb Fischer and 3rd District Rep. Adrian Smith have not responded to requests for comment.

The Nebraska Democratic Party said the disruption is taking a toll. Chair Jane Kleeb said the Republican Party “owns this chaos, and Nebraska families and our troops are paying the price.”

“They own Trump’s erratic, unhinged behavior,” Kleeb went on to say. “They own the gas prices, crushing working people. If a Democrat were in the White House acting this way, every reporter in the country would be asking every cabinet secretary when they plan to invoke the 25th. Republicans stay silent. They built him, and they own every bit of this mess. The fix is clear: vote Democrats into office in massive numbers, and hope our allies can help hold the world together while Trump unravels it."

Following the president’s remarks Tuesday, nearly two dozen Democratic members of Congress have called for Trump’s cabinet to invoke the 25th amendment to the U.S. Constitution and remove him.