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elizabeth warren
Trump—Who Just Sent Thousands More Troops—Says He's Mulling End to War on Iran
"Sounds like Trump preparing himself an off-ramp and trying to dump the Hormuz mess on others," said one observer.
Mar 20, 2026
President Donald Trump on Friday continued to send contradictory messages on his plans for the US-Israeli assault on Iran, declaring that he is not interested in a ceasefire but is nevertheless considering "winding down" the three-week war, just two days after ordering thousands more troops to the Middle East
Trump wrote on his Truth Social network, "We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East with respect to the Terrorist Regime of Iran."
Separately, the president told reporters Friday that he does not "want to do a ceasefire" in Iran.
This, after the president reportedly ordered 4,000 additional US troops deployed to the Mideast. On Friday, an unnamed US official told Axios that Trump is considering sending even more troops in order to secure the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and possibly occupy Kharg Island, home to a port from which around 90% of Iran's crude oil is exported.
Sound like Trump preparing himself an offramp and trying to dump the Hormuz mess on others. But as it is Trump, who knows and this could change in short order.
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— Brian Finucane (@bcfinucane.bsky.social) March 20, 2026 at 2:21 PM
Trump also said Friday that the Strait of Hormuz must be "guarded and policed" by other nations that use the vital waterway, through which around 20 million barrels of oil passed daily before the war.
Some observers questioned the timing of Trump's "winding down" post. Investment adviser Amit Kukreja said on X that Trump "obviously saw the market reaction towards the end of the day," and "now once again, he’s trying to convince everyone that the war is done; just not sure if the market believes it anymore."
Others mocked Trump's assertion—which he has repeated for two weeks—that the war is almost won, and his claim that he is winding down the operation as he sends more troops and asks Congress for $200 billion in additional funds.
Still others warned against sending US ground troops into Iran—a move opposed by more than two-thirds of American voters, according to a Data for Progress survey published Thursday.
"I cannot overstate what a disastrous decision it would be for President Trump to order American boots on the ground in this illegal war and send US troops to fight and die in Iran," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Friday on social media.
Noting other Trump contradictions—including his declaration that "we're flying wherever we want" and "have nobody even shooting at us" a day after a US F-35 fighter jet was hit by Iranian air defenses—Chicago technology and political commentator Tom Joseph said Friday on X that "Trump has no idea what he’s doing."
"Call out Trump’s incompetence. This war is like a cartoon to him. He desperately needs a series of a catastrophes to distract from Epstein so he’s letting it happen," Joseph added, referring to the late convicted child sex criminal and former Trump friend Jeffrey Epstein. The war is solvable, but Trump has to go be removed from office first."
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Praising Platner's 'Fighting Spirit,' Warren Is Latest Senator to Endorse Maine Senate Candidate
“People are excited to vote for someone who will actually fight for them. Not just nibble around the edges.”
Mar 19, 2026
US Senate candidate Graham Platner said Thursday that he was looking forward to joining Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the fight to take on "Wall Street and the billionaires waging a class war against the rest of us" after the progressive lawmaker announced her endorsement of the combat veteran who has centered the struggles of working families across Maine in his campaign.
Warren (D-Mass.) became the fourth sitting senator to throw her support behind Platner, following Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), and Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.).
The "class war" Platner spoke about figured heavily into Warren's statement announcing her endorsement, which she gave in a video posted on social media.
"He understands what's happening to working people when there's not someone in Washington fighting like hell for your family," said Warren. "We've already seen it. Hospitals are closing down. Gas prices are up. [President Donald] Trump's illegal tariffs have made everything more expensive. And now we're at war with Iran."
"Oh—and God forbid, you want to buy a home," she said, referencing fast-rising median home prices, which have shot up both nationally and in Maine in recent years.
🚨Endorsement Alert! 🚨
“People are excited to vote for someone who will actually fight for them. Not just nibble around the edges.”
Thank you, Senator Warren. Together I look forward to taking on Wall Street and the billionaires waging a class war against the rest of us. pic.twitter.com/BQjKMNaldP
— Graham Platner for Senate (@grahamformaine) March 19, 2026
Like Warren, Platner has pledged to take on "the billionaire economy" by imposing a billionaire minimum tax, and passing a constitutional amendment to stop the ultrarich from "buying elections."
Warren also emphasized that as a combat veteran who was deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan, Platner "knows the consequences of Donald Trump sending our service members to fight endless wars in the Middle East."
Platner faces Gov. Janet Mills in the Democratic Senate primary; both are hoping to challenge Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). Numerous polls have shown Platner beating Mills in the primary and Collins by several points in the general election, while Mills has been shown losing to the longtime senator or beating her by a smaller margin than Platner.
Ahead of Warren's endorsement, Mills launched her first attack ad against Platner, showing several women reading old posts the Senate candidate wrote on Reddit about sexual assault survivors several years ago. Platner addressed the posts several months ago, saying they do not reflect his views today. Since the controversy, which first came to light just after Mills entered the race at the urging of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Platner has continued to lead the governor in polls and has addressed overflow crowds at rallies across the state.
Platner also raised $7.8 million last year compared to $2.6 million raised by Mills and $4.6 million raised by Collins.
The enthusiasm for Platner in Maine did not go unnoticed by Warren.
"Graham Platner has the grit to go against the grain and to fight for what is right," said the senator on Thursday. "And the people in Maine are fired up and excited for change... That's the energy, that's the fighting spirit that the Democratic Party needs now more than ever. Graham Platner can help us win back the Senate, and he can help us build a country that doesn't just work for a tiny sliver at the top, but a nation that works for working families."
Platner called the endorsement "an honor."
"Sen. Warren has spent her career fighting those who use power and wealth to take advantage of working families," said Platner. "She's been an inspiration, and I look forward to working by her side in the Senate to take on Wall Street, monopolies, and the corruption in Washington."
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Trump 'Too Busy Siding With Wall Street,' Says Warren as US Credit Card Debt Crisis Explodes
A new analysis shows that over 40% of all US adults are unable to fully pay off their credit cards each month, leaving them trapped in "cycles of persistent debt."
Mar 17, 2026
US President Donald Trump promised repeatedly during his 2024 campaign to temporarily cap credit card interest rates at 10%, but—in the face of Wall Street opposition—he has done nothing concrete to fulfill that pledge since returning to the White House.
That failure, according to an analysis released Tuesday, has so far cost Americans $134.5 billion in interest payments. Every day, The Century Foundation (TCF) and Protect Borrowers estimate, US credit card holders are accruing $368 million more in interest than they would have if rates were capped at 10%. The average interest rate for credit cards in the US is currently around 25%, according to a Forbes measure.
In January, Trump called on Congress to approve a 10% cap on credit card interest rates for one year, and bipartisan legislation has been introduced in both the House and the Senate. But the president has not pressured bank-friendly Republicans to back the measure, and he vowed earlier this month to refuse to sign any legislation that reaches his desk unless lawmakers approve a massive voter suppression bill that is likely dead in the Senate.
“Trump could work with Congress to deliver on his promise to cap credit card interest rates at 10%—saving the average American with credit card debt about $900 a year," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Tuesday. "But he is too busy siding with Wall Street.”
The new analysis by TCF and Protect Borrowers shows that over 40% of adults in the US are "unable to pay off their credit card bills each month, trapping them in cycles of persistent debt that balloons ever-higher due to record-high, industry-inflated interest rates and predatory fees."
Collectively, around 111 million Americans carry more than $1 trillion in credit card debt month to month, according to the analysis, and more than 27 million Americans can't afford more than the minimum monthly payment on their cards.
"Americans’ monthly credit card payments have grown by nearly 40% since 2018, a trend that is continuing unabated under President Trump," TCF and Protect Borrowers found. "From 2018 to 2025, the average monthly credit card payment rose by $553, or 38% (from $1,441 to $1,994). This growth far outstrips inflation."
"Since Trump’s inauguration alone, the average annual amount that Americans pay in credit card bills grew by an additional $1,177 (from $22,756 to $23,933)," the groups added. "The pace of this growth suggests that, in large part due to soaring interest rates, families today devote more income to credit card payments than at any point in history."
The nation's worsening credit card debt crisis comes amid a broader affordability crisis in an economy that Trump has hailed as the "greatest" in history, despite all the glaring evidence to the contrary.
A West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America survey published last week found that roughly a third of respondents—equivalent to more than 80 million Americans—said they have had to skip a meal, borrow money, cut back on utilities, or make other painful trade-offs to afford healthcare expenses over the last 12 months as prices continue to rise across the economy.
“Grocery, utility, and healthcare bills are piling up, and Americans are increasingly turning to credit cards—some carrying interest rates exceeding 22%—just to make ends meet,” Jennifer Zhang, policy, research, and data Analyst at Protect Borrowers and co-author of the new analysis, said Tuesday.
“President Trump promised to tackle crushing credit card interest rates by January 20 of this year," Zhang added, "but that deadline has come and gone."
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