Vance: Israeli Officials Pushing US Toward Indefinite Iran War
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- JD Vance said on Joe Rogan's podcast (posted Wednesday) that he knows "beyond a shadow of a doubt" that members of the Israeli government are trying to shift U.S. policy because they want the military campaign against Iran to continue "indefinitely."
- Vance defended the deal reached last month to end the Iran war, which critics in both countries say fails to curb Iran's missile program, provides no clear path to dismantling its nuclear facilities, and constrains Israel in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.
- Vance said he isn't bothered by Israel or Russia attempting to influence U.S. policy, but objects when those influence operations "actually affect American political judgment."
- Anonymously speaking, Israeli senior officials told reporters the deal's terms are bad because they leave Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program untouched — a view they say is shared across Israel's leadership.
- In a previous escalation in June, Vance told Israeli critics that Trump is the country's only ally, citing billions in U.S. defense aid as leverage.
- Asked whether the U.S. would have entered the most recent Iran war absent Israeli influence, Vance said "yes, yes I do," attributing the policy to Trump's independent belief that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon.
Why it matters: Vance's public accusations deepen a U.S.-Israeli split at a moment when the Iran deal is being attacked in both countries and the war's costs keep mounting. By stating the U.S. would have fought Iran even without Israeli pressure, Vance is building an explicit independent rationale for the war — useful political insulation for Trump as congressional and public scrutiny of the open-ended military commitment intensifies.
