President Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with what aides describe as the limits of military leverage against Iran, CBS News reported late on Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter.
According to the report, unlike previous targeted operations, including the recent one removing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from power, Trump has been told that any strike on Tehran’s assets would almost certainly not be a singular, decisive blow. Instead, limited strikes could open the door to a wider confrontation — one that risks drawing the United States into a protracted conflict in the Middle East.
Trump, in a social media post denied any reports that Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, “is against us going to War with Iran.” Caine, he said, “would like not to see War but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a Military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won.”
Trump said Caine “has not spoken of not doing Iran, or even the fake limited strikes that I have been reading about, he only knows one thing, how to WIN and, if he is told to do so, he will be leading the pack.”
President Trump denied a Washington Post report that Gen. Dan Caine warned about munitions shortages and allied opposition complicating a potential war with Iran, calling the story “100% incorrect.” Trump said Caine believes any conflict would be “easily won” and that U.S. B-2… https://t.co/hvCREaXTcj pic.twitter.com/uqAQ6UBD4E
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) February 23, 2026
A senior military official told CBS News that military planners are providing unbiased advice. The White House referred CBS News to the Trump’s social media post.
The report added that “at the heart of the president’s impatience is a desire for a forceful action that would reset the diplomatic table.”
“He has pressed advisers for options that would deliver a punishing strike — one substantial enough, in his view, to compel Iranian leaders to return to negotiations under more favorable terms for Washington. But military planners have cautioned that such an outcome cannot be guaranteed,” according to CBS News.
Axios first reported details of the US president’s frustrations.
It reported, earlier on Monday, that Gen Caine has been advising Trump and top officials that a “military campaign” against Iran could carry significant risks, in particular the possibility of becoming entangled in a prolonged conflict, according to two sources with knowledge of those internal discussions.
Earlier last week, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Imam Sayyed Ali Khamenei dismissed US military threats against Iran, stressing that the Islamic Republic is capable of sinking US warships.
Source: Websites (edited by Al-Manar)