President Trump convened an extraordinary Saturday morning meeting in the White House situation room to discuss next steps as the situation in Iran teeters between a peace deal and a resumption of war. The specific subjects under discussion were the status of the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian responses to some U.S. proposals. Quite honestly, I imagine one key subject of discussion was "who the hell is calling the shots in Iran?" Because from an outsider's point of view, it looks like the 95 IQ types in the government think they are in charge, but actions on the ground indicate it is the 65 IQ, bearded, sheep-fondlers with guns who are making the decisions.
In attendance were Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, White House Iran negotiator Steve Witkoff, CIA Director John Ratliffe, and Joint Chiefs chairman Dan Caine. Notably absent was Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.
As we've posted here on RedState, the mood this week has swung between near euphoric (Trump Cheers Strait of Hormuz Reopening During Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire — but There’s a Big Catch – RedState) and resigned to war (Iranian Navy Fires On Two Vessels in Strait of Hormuz, Demonstrating That Waterway Is Not Open – RedState). Saturday, The Times reported that Iran had put the kibosh on Trump's statement that Iran had agreed to give up its enriched uranium.
Right now, the White House seems to be leaning toward resuming hostilities. President Trump has set a deadline of Wednesday for a deal (Trump: I Will End Ceasefire Wednesday Unless Deal Done — but Xi's 'Very Happy' As Hormuz Reopens – RedState) and the U.S. Navy is moving ahead with plans to seize "dark fleet" and Iranian ships no matter where they are in the world; see Report: Trump Planning to Drop Another Hammer on Iran and Their Ships – RedState.
The mood following the situation room meeting was grim. Trump said that Iran can't 'blackmail' the U.S, "They wanted to close up the Strait again, as they've been doing for years, but they can't blackmail us."
⭕️ President Donald Trump convened a White House Situation Room meeting Saturday to address the escalating Strait of Hormuz crisis and stalled Iran talks, Axios reports.
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 18, 2026
The ceasefire is set to expire in three days, raising fears of renewed war if no deal is reached.
A source… pic.twitter.com/UKnt76xiFb
TRUMP: We have very good conversations going on. It’s working out very well. They got a little cute, as they have been doing for 47 years. Nobody ever took them on. We took them on.
They have no navy, they have no air force, they have no leaders, they have no nothing. Actually, their leaders are… it is regime change. You call that enforced regime change. But we’re talking to them.
They wanted to close up the strait again — as they’ve been doing for years — and again, blackmail us. In fact, a lot of ships are coming up to Texas and Louisiana. I don’t know if you know. The ships are coming up. If they get used to it, maybe they’ll keep doing it. It’s worked out pretty good. But it’s going along, actually, very well, and we’ll see. We’ll have some information by the end of the day. We’re talking to them.
We’ll have some information by the end of the day. We’re talking to them, we’re taking a tough stand. They’ve killed a lot of people. A lot of our people have been killed. A lot of your fellow soldiers have been killed over the years by Iran. The roadside bombs. Soleimani. I killed Solemani.
UNKNOWN: Explosively formed penetrators. They were making them in Iran and bringing them into Iraq and blasting them through vehicles.
He was the father of the roadside bomb, essentially. He killed a lot of people, and when you see soldiers and others, but soldiers generally walking around with no legs, with no arms, with a face that has been smashed, that was Solemani, that was Iran that did that. So we have a much different view on it than other presidents. They’ve gotten away with murder for 47 years; they’re not getting away with it any longer.
While Trump said there were "good conversations going on," an Italian outlet quotes someone they refer to as the "ayatollah" as saying Trump "talks too much."
As I pointed out in Iran Is a Dishonest and Delusional Negotiating Partner and We Can't Let Them Control the Narrative – RedState, not only can Iran not be trusted to keep any deal it makes, its view of the landscape might as well be in a different universe from the one everyone else inhabits. To make matters worse, it really isn't clear who we should be negotiating with, or even if anyone can negotiate on behalf of Iran; see Here's More Evidence the Iranian Regime Is Fracturing and in Trouble as Trump Holds Its Feet to the Fire – RedState.
I think there is a greater than 50-50 chance that nothing happens today to "bend the arc of history" towards a lasting peace deal, and even less of a chance that something happens before Wednesday's deadline.
For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
Help us report the truth about the Trump administration’s decisive actions to keep Americans safe and bring peace to the world. Join RedState VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your VIP membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member