A second flagpole has been installed on the North Lawn near Pennsylvania Avenue. Together, the towering additions represent the most prominent changes to the White House exterior since Trump resumed the presidency and began pushing forward with his vision to reshape the building.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump declared:
“It is my Great Honor to announce that I will be putting up two beautiful Flag Poles on both sides of the White House, North and South Lawns. It is a GIFT from me of something which was always missing from this magnificent place.” ...
“These are the most magnificent poles made - They are tall, tapered, rust proof, rope inside the pole, and of the highest quality. Hopefully they will proudly stand at both sides of the White House for many years to come!”
You can see his post below.
@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
The announcement came just hours after Trump publicly demanded the “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following a series of Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks on Iranian officials Friday that triggered retaliatory strikes from Tehran.
On Tuesday, Trump claimed the U.S. knows “exactly” where Khamenei is located but added he wouldn’t be targeted “at least not for now.” The following day, Khamenei dismissed calls to surrender and warned that any U.S. involvement would result in “irreparable damage” to its forces.
Amid all this, many found Trump's focus on his flagpole display rather than brokering a diplomatic solution to avoid greater conflict to be profoundly inappropriate.
Trump said Thursday he will decide within two weeks whether to involve U.S. forces directly in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, citing what he called a “substantial chance” for renewed nuclear negotiations with Tehran.
Since hostilities began last week, at least 657 people have been killed in Iran—including 263 civilians—and more than 2,000 have been wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights organization.
In response to Israeli attacks, Iran has launched roughly 450 missiles and 1,000 drones toward Israel, according to the Israeli military. While most were intercepted by Israel’s advanced air defense systems, the strikes have left at least 24 people dead and hundreds more injured.
The teaser was captioned simply:
"Ted Cruz on Iran. Full interview tomorrow."
You can watch the clip here via YouTube or below via X:
The clip begins as Carlson asks Cruz:
"How many people live in Iran, by the way?"
Cruz responds:
"I don't know the population."
Carlson then asked:
"At all?"
Cruz reiterated:
"No, I don't know the population."
Seemingly surprised, Carlson responded:
"You don't know the population of the country you seek to topple?"
After again saying no, Cruz then asked Carlson:
"How many people live in Iran?"
Carlson informed the senator who is openly backing United States' aggression against the sovereign Middle Eastern country:
"92 million."
While some people dismissed Carlson's line of questioning, others refused to give Cruz a free pass on his complete ignorance of the people who would be affected by any U.S. attacks on Iran after deciding to back the Trump administration's tactics in the region.
Then after Cruz acknowledged the information, Carlson asked:
"How could you not know that?"
Cruz replied:
"I don't sit around memorizing population tables."
@Sebachambe/X
Carlson informed Cruz:
"Well it’s kind of relevant because you’re calling for the overthrow of the government. If you don't know anything about the country..."
Cruz, visibly upset interjected:
"I didn’t say I don't know anything about the country."
So Carlson pivoted to ask:
"Okay, what’s the ethnic mix of Iran?"
Cruz replied:
"They are Persians and predominantly Shi'a [Islamic]."
According to World Atlas, Iran is a multi-ethnic, multi-religion nation. Persians at roughly 51% are the largest ethnic group, followed by Azeris at 24%, Kurds at 7%, and the Gilakis, Mazandaranis, Arabs, Baloch, Lurs, and Turkmen each comprising smaller percentages.
Shi'a Islam is the second largest sect of Islam at ~10% which is way behind Sunnī at ~87%, but Shi'a is the majority sect in Iran. According to Iran Safar, Islam is the official state religion, but Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and Christianity are also officially recognized as minority religions. Baha'i, Mandaeism, and Yarsanism are also practiced in the county, but are not officially recognized by the government.
After Carlson asked what percentage of the population was Persian or practiced Shi'a Islam, things devolved into the men shouting at each other.
Carlson told Cruz:
"You don’t know anything about Iran!"
"You’re a senator who is calling for the overthrow of the government and you don’t know anything about the country!"
Cruz countered:
"[You claim] they’re not trying to murder Donald Trump!"
A Trump assassination plot is the unsubstantiated conspiracy theory the Trump administration is using to justify joining Israel in escalating hostilities in the region.
It harkened back to the Bush administration's justification for invading Iraq. It, like "weapons of mass destruction," ultimately failed to pass the "credible threat" versus "rumors and wishful thinking" test.
Cruz also yelled about the Trump administration's assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in January of 2020.
@_e_tto/X
Carlson stated Cruz didn't really believe Trump was in danger, responding:
"I’m saying you don’t believe they’re trying to murder Trump because you’re not calling for military strikes against them in retaliation."
Cruz then claimed:
"We are carrying out military strikes—today!"
But Cruz immediately tried to walk back his words, saying the United States was only supporting Israel, not directly attacking Iran.
Carlson, at the end of the clip, stated:
"This is high stakes."
"You’re a senator—if you’re saying the United States government is at war with Iran right now, people are listening."
The clip was undoubtedly chosen to entice people to watch Carlson's content—something Cruz whinged about on X, trying to get Trump's supporters on his side.
@tedcruz/X
But as much as Cruz tries to ingratiate himself with Trump and his MAGA minions, the man dubbed the most hated person in Congress—by his fellow Republicans—just isn't that popular.
Multiple people fact-checked/trolled Cruz using X's generative AI chatbot Grok.
@whatevervisions/X
@GroksHandler/X
Cruz is even less popular than Carlson.
@texan77581/X
Some people, on the other hand...
The Tucker Carlson Show released the full episode on Wednesday.
