President Trump said Tuesday that the Iran war played a role in the midterm election results that saw Republicans lose control of the House and Senate.
“I think people agree with what I’m doing on Iran, but they really probably weren’t willing to do the short-term consequence of paying more for gasoline,” Mr. Trump said in an interview with Fox News that ran almost 30 minutes into Wednesday morning.
“Historically, I think it’s going to be much more important than this evening because you can’t let the No. 1 state sponsor of terror have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
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“I think historically I will be judged for having done the right thing, but it gave us an evening that was not that pleasant,” Mr. Trump said with uncharacteristic understatement.
The eight-month war emerged as a major political liability for Republicans, with voters increasingly frustrated by rising gasoline prices, economic uncertainty and the administration’s handling of the conflict.
The war sent energy prices soaring, raising the already high cost of living.
Democrats made the war a central part of their closing argument, accusing Mr. Trump of dragging the country into an expensive confrontation while Americans struggled with the cost of living.
The president had pledged in October that American forces would not launch additional attacks against Iran before the election, citing progress in diplomatic negotiations.
But U.S. forces carried out limited strikes against Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, just hours before voters headed to the polls. American military officials described the operation as defensive and said it followed Iranian fire against a U.S. aircraft.
Early exit polls suggested Mr. Trump faced significant dissatisfaction among voters, with his approval rating standing at roughly 38%, according to CBS News.
About six in 10 voters said the president was a factor in their House vote, but the overwhelming number of that group said his influence was negative.
The results underscored the extent to which the midterms had become a referendum on his second term and raised questions about the president’s handling of Iran.
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