As Donald Trump prepared to leave the G7 summit in Canada ahead of schedule, the president took a moment to publish an item to his social media platform, which read in part, “Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON. I said it over and over again!”
He then said it over and over again. Less than an hour later, he published a follow-up missive to add, “Somebody please explain to kooky Tucker Carlson that, ‘IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!’” In case that was too subtle, six minutes later, Trump again wrote, “IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON.”
Soon after, while talking to reporters on Air Force One, the president said once again, “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, it’s very simple.” But as The Associated Press reported, that’s not all he said.
He also dismissed congressional testimony from National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who told lawmakers in March that U.S. spy agencies did not believe Iran was building a nuclear weapon. ‘I don’t care what she said,’ Trump said. ‘I think they were very close to having it.’
He appeared quite serious about this.
Collins: "Tulsi Gabbard testified in March that the intelligence community said Iran wasn't building a nuclear weapon."Trump: "I don't care what she said. I think they were very close to having one."
— The Bulwark (@thebulwark.com) 2025-06-17T13:02:07.975Z
There are a handful of elements to this that are worth keeping in mind.
Right off the bat, Trump’s own director of national intelligence really did tell the House Intelligence Committee in March that the U.S. intelligence community “continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme leader Khomeini has not authorized the nuclear weapons program that he suspended in 2003.”








