Trump splits with Gabbards assessment that Iran isnt pursuing a nuke: Dont care what she said

President Trump broke with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s prior assessment that Iran is not pursuing a nuclear weapon and warned that the theocratic regime is “close” to having one.Back in March, Gabbard had testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hadn’t “authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003.”“I don’t care what she said.I think they were very close to having one,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One early Tuesday during his return flight from the Group of Seven summit in Canada.Last week, Israel fired off preemptive strikes on Iran, targeting the regime’s top military brass, scientists, missile capabilities and nuclear facilities.Those attacks came under the assertion that the threat from Iran was imminent.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the unprecedented assault on Tehran by warning that “if not stopped, Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in a very short time.”However, on Sunday, Netanyahu clarified on “Special Report with Bret Baier” that the Israelis believe Iran “would achieve a test device and possibly an initial device within months and certainly less than a year.”“The intel we got and we shared with the United States was absolutely clear, was absolutely clear that they were working in a secret plan to weaponize the uranium,” Netanyahu claimed when pressed about Gabbard’s assessment.“We saw enough uranium, enriched uranium for nine bombs.”A senior Trump admin official told The Post Tuesday: “At the highest levels of the US government, we believe that Iran is as close to having a nuclear weapon as one can get.

They have all the components necessary to put one together.”Trump’s support of Israel’s attack on Iran has splintered much of the MAGA base, with traditional allies such as right-wing pundit Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon decrying the move and warning against joining the war ef...