It was a quick, three-minute impromptu phone call with PBS Newshour White House Correspondent Liz Landers, but Donald Trump had plenty to say Monday about how Operation Epic Fury is proceeding against Iran and what the future might hold.
He said he could obliterate the small but crucial oil export hub, Kharg Island, and take out the Islamic Republic’s energy facilities across the nation, but he’s reluctant because rebuilding would take years after the mullahs are finally tossed out forever.
American and Israeli forces have already destroyed all the military facilities on Kharg, but left the oil production machinery still standing:
He started with an overall assessment saying "we're doing very well," reiterating comments about destroying Iran's military. He added: "They want to make a deal but they're not ready to make a deal in my opinion."
— Liz Landers (@ElizLanders) March 16, 2026
It would be better to have something to rebuild instead of starting from scratch, he argued:
Trump announced Friday on Truth Social that he had "totally obliterated every military target" on the island, home to a small oil terminal in the Persian Gulf that ships 90% of Iran's oil exports.
U.S. military officials reported Saturday that a number of military and missile facilities were destroyed in the attack, but oil infrastructure was preserved. Iran foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran would retaliate if the country's oil or energy infrastructure was attacked.
By phone Monday, Trump described the island as "out of commission except for the pipes, which I left."
"I didn't want to hit the pipes because, you know, years of work to put them together," he added. "It's dead militarily now, totally. Every military area … they've fled."
Last night, U.S. forces executed a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island, Iran. The strike destroyed naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and multiple other military sites. U.S. forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg… pic.twitter.com/2X1glD4Flt
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 14, 2026
U.S. forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure.
MORE: The Conversation Trump Just Had About Kharg Island Blows Up the Liberal Media Narrative
The Critical Island That Now Holds the Key to Victory Over Iran
The president added that the nation's electric plants could be taken out at a moment’s notice:
Trump said he "left a lot of infrastructure" in the attacks on Tehran since the U.S. and Israel first attacked in late February, because "it's years of building."
"I could knock out the electric plants in one hour. They'd be gone. But if I do that, that's years of rebuilding and it's trauma. So I'm trying to hold off on that kind of thing."
The president had also said on Sunday night, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, that if he makes the decision to attack Kharg’s production facilities, it will be game over very quickly:
"We can do that on five minutes' notice. We have it all locked and loaded and ready to go if we want to do it," he said. "We chose not to do it. I chose not to do it again. We'll see what happens."
Trump added that his threats are intended to force Iran into talks. The regime wants to "negotiate badly," he said, but so far they haven't made any concessions he considers significant.
If they don't come up with something better, evidently, they'll just keep getting hit until they either bend the knee or join so many more of their former leaders as casualties of this conflict.
President Trump speaks to the press on Air Force One on Operation Epic Fury:
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 16, 2026
"They want to negotiate badly, as they should, but I don't think they're ready to do what they have to do... We will finish the job." pic.twitter.com/0TuSK0TfAd
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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