The White House made no major public recognition Friday of the six-month anniversary of the Iran war, a conflict President Donald Trump predicted earlier this year would last only a matter of weeks.
Neither Trump nor his administration acknowledged the milestone as the war entered its seventh month, even as Democrats and one Republican critic of the president seized on the anniversary to renew their calls for an end to the conflict.
White House aides underscored Trump’s accomplishments from the war, with the original war aims including Iran’s denuclearization and the degradation of its military capabilities, though at times they also included the defunding of its regional proxies and regime change.
“As President Trump said, the Strait [of Hormuz] is open and all mines have been cleared,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly told the Washington Examiner. “There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The naval blockade remains in full force and effect, and Operation Economic Outcast is underway to sever every remaining economic lifeline sustaining the regime.”
The Pentagon similarly promoted Trump’s achievements in the Iran war after the conflict started Feb. 28 following the president’s order to commence Operation Epic Fury in partnership with Israel and has been connected to the deaths of 18 U.S. service members.
“U.S. forces have achieved every military objective assigned,” Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson told the Washington Examiner. “CENTCOM intercepted thousands of Iranian drones and missiles, significantly degraded Iran’s ability to launch them, and destroyed up to 90% of Iran’s drone, ballistic missile, and naval industrial base. Furthermore, U.S. warships engaged in arguably the most intense combat at sea the Navy has seen since World War II, executing decisive strikes and sinking the Iranian navy with exceptional tactical precision. And American forces functionally destroyed Iran’s space capability.”
While multiple Republicans have voted to reduce Trump’s war powers to express their opposition to the conflict, one of the only GOP lawmakers to speak on the anniversary was Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), a longtime critic of the president who lost his primary to a Trump-backed challenger this year.
“Today, we have been at War with Iran for SIX MONTHS,” Massie wrote Friday on X. “The 1973 War Powers Act required Trump to withdraw forces within 90 days absent authorization from Congress. They ridiculously claimed to stop the war & restart new hostilities @ 91 days. We are past 180 days. End the War.”
At the same time, Democratic leaders marked the occasion by criticizing Trump’s action in Iran.
“Trump’s disastrous war in Iran has accomplished nothing but the depletion of American stockpiles and the weakening of our military standing. That’s what I call an abject failure,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) posted to social media.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) echoed a similar sentiment, labeling it a “war of choice” and calling for War Secretary Pete Hegseth’s removal.
“Donald Trump and Republican extremists promised no more failed wars. And then did the exact opposite. Pete Hegseth should be fired, the war must end and taxpayer dollars should be spent to make life more affordable,” Jeffries said.
Their counterparts, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), have not said anything to mark six months of the war.
Trump spent Friday in Houston, where he presented the Congressional Space Medal of Honor and called the International Space Station after attending a Republican National Committee fundraiser Thursday night.
When asked about Iran by reporters Thursday, Trump described the regime as being “in deep trouble” and having “very little capacity,” adding they are not “paying their troops.”
“Last night we took 24 boats through the Strait,” he said. “We’re taking them through all the time. I say it very openly. It doesn’t mean we’re finished with the military, but we are.”
Trump also emphasized Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s strategy for putting economic pressure on Iran amid a pause in military strikes and diplomatic negotiations after the collapse of the memorandum of understanding shortly after it was signed in June.
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Bessent’s economic “D-Day” for Iran and its partners has been criticized for its lack of detail and specificity, prompting Trump to snap at a reporter who asked why the administration was not sanctioning Chinese banks that do business with Iran.
“Who said I’m not?” he asked. “You said, ‘Why not?’ I mean, who said I’m not? You don’t know if I’m doing it … I don’t have to announce everything, do I?”