Schumer blasts Trump plan to seize Iran’s Kharg Island as ‘fiasco’ after fresh U.S. strikes

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday assailed President Trump’s announcement that the United States intends to seize Iran’s Kharg Island, calling the ongoing military campaign a “fiasco” and warning that American troops could soon be deployed on the ground.

Mr. Schumer delivered his remarks on the Senate floor, accusing the president and his top national security officials of repeatedly misleading the public about the state of hostilities. “On Iran, for weeks, Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth and Marco Rubio have insisted their disastrous war in Iran is over. How stupid do they think the American people are? This morning, Trump said he plans to take Kharg Island, which could even mean putting American boots on the ground,” Mr. Schumer said. 

The New York Democrat accused the administration of failing to protect U.S. forces even as it claimed victory. “It doesn’t take a military genius to see that Trump’s fiasco of a war with Iran never ended — not with American helicopters being shot down, not when American bases are being attacked and American troops are coming under fire,” he said. 

Mr. Schumer’s floor speech came hours after Mr. Trump posted a sweeping threat on Truth Social, vowing to dramatically escalate American military and economic pressure on Tehran. The president warned that U.S. forces would strike Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT” and announced plans to seize Kharg Island and other Iranian oil infrastructure, saying the U.S. would assume “total control” of Iran’s oil and gas markets, comparing the anticipated action to American operations in Venezuela. 

Kharg Island accounts for roughly 90% of Iran’s crude oil shipments and serves as the country’s main oil export terminal. Located in the northern Persian Gulf, the island hosts extensive infrastructure, including storage tanks, pipelines and offshore loading terminals. Mr. Trump separately told Fox News on Thursday that his preference had “always been” to take Kharg Island, but that he was not sure whether “America has the stomach for it.”

Mr. Schumer has repeatedly criticized the administration’s handling of the Iran conflict in recent months, framing it as an unauthorized war of choice that has driven up gas prices and cost American lives. In a previous Senate floor address, Mr. Schumer said the conflict had killed 13 American service members and wounded nearly 400 others, while costing U.S. taxpayers at least $29 billion.

Iranian officials said Thursday that renewed U.S. strikes had rendered an existing ceasefire arrangement effectively void, as peace talks continued to stall.