Fox News host Bret Baier said President Donald Trump told him directly that the 8 p.m. Eastern deadline for Iran “is happening,” warning the U.S. is prepared to act if no deal is reached.
Trump threatened that Iran’s “whole civilization will die” if his terms are not met by the dealine, and Baier reported on Tuesday the president is holding to that timeline. On “America’s Newsroom” Baier described his phone call moments earlier, reporting that Trump confirmed to him the deadline “is happening.”
“I just got off the phone with the president,” Baier told anchors Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino. “He called, and I said, ‘Listen, if you were to put odds on it, what are the odds this will end up being a negotiated deal?’ He said he wasn’t going to put odds on it, but he said, ‘8:00 p.m. is happening.’ That’s what he said. He said if we get to that point, there is going to be an attack like they have not seen.’”
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“Now, he is sticking to that at this point,” Baier continued. “He said if negotiations move forward today and there is something concrete, that could change. But at this hour, he didn’t want to put odds on it, but they are moving forward with the plans we have.”
Trump announced that American and Israeli forces launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28 after negotiations over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs collapsed. Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, said in a March 2 Fox News interview that Iranian negotiators declared the Islamist regime would continue enriching uranium, and that the country claimed to already possess enough material for nearly a dozen “dirty” weapons.
“He says he doesn’t want to do it, but at this hour he is sticking to it and saying it might be likely if they don’t come to the table,” Baier told Perino and Hemmer.
Trump initially threatened to hit Iranian power plants in a March 21 Truth Social post, demanding that the Islamic theocracy cease efforts to block the Strait of Hormuz. He granted a reprieve on March 23, which he later extended to Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern time (3:30 a.m. Wednesday in Tehran).
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