Even Fox News is stunned after President Donald Trump threatened to "bomb the sh*t out of" Oman if the country "gets in the way" of talks between the U.S. and Iran.
Trump’s remarks came amid stalled U.S.-Iran negotiations and separate talks between Iran and Oman over how commercial shipping could resume through the Strait of Hormuz. Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst reported that Trump warned the U.S. would attack Oman if it interfered with American efforts, though Fox did not release audio of the interview.
Later, when reporters asked Trump about Oman in the Oval Office, he said he believed the country had “not behaved very well” but did not explain what actions had prompted his threat, only saying:
“I don’t think they behaved very well, but we’d handle them very easily, just like we do other things."
Oman’s role is particularly significant because it has long served as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran, and its negotiations with Iran could potentially help restore shipping through the strategically important waterway.
These facts were not lost on Fox News hosts during an interview with retired Brigadier General John Teichert, who is campaigning to represent Maryland in the U.S. Senate.
Teichert said:
"I don't see Oman doing anything that would make them complicit in supporting the Iranian regime and I would rather the administration focus on fulfilling the threats they made to the regime."
"In the last few days, three tankers have been struck in the Strait of Hormuz. The administration has said there would be a strong U.S. response if that happened, and our credibility is on the line every time we don't follow through on those threats."
"I'd rather we focus on that than making new threats toward Oman."
Teichert's remarks prompted one network host to openly wonder "what they [Oman] have done to earn that."
You can watch what happened in the video below.
People had thoughts.
Monday marked the expiration of the 60-day window Washington and Tehran had agreed to in June to negotiate an end to the war and resolve the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program. At the same time, traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen dramatically, with only 13 vessels crossing the waterway over the weekend, according to MarineTraffic.
Trump has also suggested that the U.S. could claim the strait as American territory. He said the U.S. already has “total control” of the waterway and characterized the American blockade as effective.
His threat toward Oman prompted Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine to announce plans to introduce a resolution restricting military action against the country when the Senate returns from its August recess. Kaine said he hopes to attract GOP support, arguing that Congress needs to rein in what he described as a president recklessly expanding his military authority.
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