Trump signals no Iran deal—while allies attack

Trump won’t – President Donald Trump told followers on Truth Social that he will not “rush into a deal” with Iran, even as reporting describes talks still being worked through and Republicans—ranging from Mike Pompeo to Ted Cruz and Mike Flynn—publicly clash with the White

Sunday began with a line from President Donald Trump that landed like a warning flare: he said the U.S. would not “rush into a deal” with Iran as negotiations continued across the weekend. On Truth Social. Trump added that “time is on our side.” The message was sharp enough to read between the lines—there was no deal. at least not yet.

That posture came just a day after Trump had posted that the “Final aspects and details of the Deal are currently being discussed. and will be announced shortly.” In other words. the White House’s own timeline had moved from “shortly” to “don’t rush. ” and the change helped feed a louder and more public fight inside the Republican coalition.

The dispute isn’t only about whether a deal exists. It’s about what the deal would actually do—and who is willing to accept its tradeoffs. The New York Times reported on Sunday that both sides have agreed in principle to end the Iranian blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. but that they are still describing the proposed agreement differently. Even if Iran were to commit to giving up its enriched uranium. the paper said. details about how and when would still need to be worked out later.

That gap in specifics is now colliding with criticism from Trump’s closest allies. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and former national security adviser Gen. Mike Flynn all broke publicly with the White House’s direction—before any signature. before any final deal—accusing the president’s approach of handing Iran leverage without adequate constraints.

Pompeo’s objections were blunt. He slammed the talks as “not remotely America First,” arguing: “It’s straightforward: Open the damned strait. Deny Iran access to money. Take out enough Iranian capability so it cannot threaten our allies in the region.”

The White House responded with anger. Trump’s communications chief Steven Cheung posted on X that Pompeo “has no idea what the fuck he’s talking about,” adding that Pompeo “should shut his stupid mouth and leave the real work to the professionals.”

Cruz took his own route—warning that even if the conflict ends, the outcome could still be a catastrophic one. He said that if the result is “an Iranian regime—still run by Islamists who chant ‘death to America’—now receiving billions of dollars. being able to enrich uranium & develop nuclear weapons. and having effective control over the Strait of Hormuz. ” then “that outcome would be a disastrous mistake.”.

Flynn, meanwhile, focused on trust and enforcement. He warned Trump that “The regime in Iran is lying to you and your negotiators (period. stop!).” He added: “Do not believe a word they say. ” and raised a specific concern about money—saying that if “we pay tribute to the regime to the tune of $25B. ” he was “concerned they’ll use it for nefarious purposes down the road.”.

Lindsey Graham, another hawkish ally of the president, also pushed for restraint on what the U.S. is signing away. On Saturday. Graham wrote on X that “It is important we get this right. ” warning that Iran would retain the ability to terrorize the region. He tied the risk to a scenario in which the Strait of Hormuz cannot be protected from Iranian terrorism and Iran still has the capability to destroy major Gulf oil infrastructure—saying that in such a case “then Iran will be perceived as being a dominate force.”.

Through all of it, Trump continued to adjust his public signals. Sunday’s delay echoed his weekend messaging—only this time it came with a counter-message from several of his most prominent supporters: that a deal, as currently described, would amount to appeasement.

Fox News, as updates continued, reported that no deal would be signed on Sunday.

What started as a negotiation story has become something messier: a public test of loyalty over how much risk Republicans are willing to tolerate before the ink is even dry—while Trump insists he’s not rushing into an agreement and “time is on our side.”

United States politics Donald Trump Iran deal Strait of Hormuz Mike Pompeo Ted Cruz Mike Flynn Lindsey Graham Steven Cheung Truth Social enriched uranium nuclear negotiations frozen Iranian funds