Fox News host Brian Kilmeade said on Tuesday that former President Donald Trump told him the U.S.-Israeli conflict in Iran is “not that popular.” Kilmeade discussed his phone conversation with Trump during the World Cup on the podcast "Kennedy Saves the World" hosted by Lisa Kennedy Montgomery.

Kilmeade quoted Trump as saying he was “surprised at the amount of progress made in the Oman talks,” referring to Oman’s role as a mediator between the U.S. and Iran. Trump reportedly acknowledged, “I realize the war is not that popular, I also realize it’s necessary.”

Kilmeade sought clarity on reports from The New York Times last month about diminishing U.S. munitions stockpiles, which allegedly led to Trump calling off an escalation of the conflict. According to Kilmeade, Trump told him to “stay away from it, not true” and assured that “we’re fine” on weapons.

However, private White House conversations reportedly focused on the Pentagon’s decreased Patriot interceptor inventory. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, cautioned that continued hostilities “would dangerously deplete interceptors available to the military’s Central Command,” according to The New York Times.

Public opinion has largely disapproved of the Iran war during its five-month duration. Trump has stated the U.S. would “beat the f—ing s—” out of Iran in response to hostilities.

Additionally, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia launched joint strikes on Iranian proxies in Iraq overnight Tuesday, retaliating against drone attacks by Iran-backed militias on Aramco’s Abqaiq oil processing facility, the world’s largest crude stabilization plant.

Sources