Morristown NJ — Former President Donald J. Trump, speaking to reporters on the tarmac in New Jersey before boarding his plane, offered a sweeping and at times improvised commentary on a range of domestic and foreign policy issues Saturday, including developments in the Middle East, and the war in Ukraine.
Mr. Trump struck an optimistic tone on U.S. backchannel diplomacy with Iran and Hamas, suggesting that a potential breakthrough in the Iran nuclear talks could be imminent. “We had some very good talks with Iran yesterday and today… some real progress, serious progress,” he said. “I might be telling you something good in the next two days.” He also indicated that discussions were underway with Israel and Hamas in an effort to “stop that whole situation as quickly as possible.”
Turning to Russia, Mr. Trump expressed visible frustration over President Vladimir V. Putin’s ongoing assault on Ukrainian cities. “He’s killing a lot of people,” Trump said. “I don’t like what Putin is doing… Something happened to this guy and I don’t like it.” When asked about the possibility of new sanctions, he responded, “Absolutely.”
On Capitol Hill, Mr. Trump addressed potential Senate revisions to a reconciliation bill involving drug pricing. “I want the Senate and the senators to make the changes they want,” he said, adding that some of the changes might have his support. “We’ll be lowering the cost of drugs from 50-85% under Trump,” he claimed, crediting congressional Republicans like John Thune and Mike Johnson for their roles in pushing the legislation forward.
On trade, Mr. Trump said he had agreed to extend talks with the European Union on steel tariffs until July 9, a delay he said was requested personally. “She said she wants to get down to serious negotiations,” he explained.
He also defended a controversial decision regarding U.S. Steel ownership, saying it would remain “controlled by the United States” and framed the deal as necessary after pressure from lawmakers. “They’re going to invest billions of dollars in steel,” he said. “It’s a partial ownership, but it will be controlled by the USA.”
Finally, addressing industrial policy, Trump distanced himself from calls to revive the U.S. textile industry. “I’m not looking to make sneakers and t-shirts,” he said. “We are looking to do chips and computers and lots of other things.”
Despite the wide range of topics covered, Mr. Trump repeatedly returned to the Iran talks. “I’d love to see no bombs dropped and a lot of people dead,” he said, clarifying immediately: “I really would like to see that not happen.”
