There is no indication that this is truer today than it was on April 7th. But Trump continues to say this, whether because he is deluded, because he is trying to calm the financial markets, or because he believes he can make it happen by repeating it.
It has been more than two months since President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire with Iran, saying at the time that the two sides were close to a deal.
Trump wrote on social media, , that it was “very advanced”, but that it would take two weeks for “the agreement to be finalized and concluded”. He concluded by saying it was “an honor to have this long-standing issue close to a resolution.”
Of course there was no resolution. But Trump still spent the next two months continuing to suggest that a deal was just around the corner. Often.
Including the period before the ceasefire, he did this at least 37 times. That’s how many times he has directly stated — in social media posts, public appearances and phone calls with the media — that a deal was imminent or that Iran was desperate to get one.
There is no indication that this is truer today than it was on April 7th. But Trump continues to say this, whether because he is deluded, because he is trying to calm the financial markets, or because he believes he can make it happen by repeating it.
But it is clearly a statement that should no longer be taken seriously.
It all started on March 23, less than a month after the start of the war. Trump spoke to journalists on Air Force One about supposed peace negotiations and cited “great points of agreement — ”. (Actually, the .)
The next day, he began repeating what would become a habitual refrain: that Iran was desperate to make a deal.
“I think we’re going to put an end to this,” Trump added. “I can’t guarantee it.”
On March 25, he went on to say that Iran “so badly wanted to make a deal.” On March 26, at a cabinet meeting, Iran was “begging for a deal.”
(Despite this supposed anxiety to close the deal, Iran managed to hold out for another two and a half months.)
On March 29, during a conversation with journalists on Air Force One, he was asked if he planned to conclude a deal the following week, to which he replied: “Yes, there will be a deal with Iran.”
Donald Trump speaks to journalists aboard Air Force One. (AP)
Trump’s predictions began to become more insistent at this point. On April 6, he said they were “very close to a deal” before a setback.
The following day, he announced the ceasefire, which was initially supposed to last two weeks while the two sides reached an agreement.
A week later, on April 15, he told Fox Business:
“We’ll see what happens,” he added. “I think they really want to make a deal.”
In the following days, Trump practically guaranteed that everything was resolved:
Although this did not materialize, Iran was still “dying to make a deal” on April 30.
“When the war ends, which shouldn’t take long…”, he bet in front of journalists on May 1st.
Trump moderated his predictions for some time, before announcing on May 18 that he was postponing military strikes for “two or three days” at the request of Middle Eastern countries, “because they think they are very close to reaching an agreement.”
At this point, even Trump himself seemed to recognize how many times similar predictions had failed.
“We’ve had periods where we thought we were very close to reaching a deal and that didn’t work out,” Trump said, before adding: “But this time it’s a little different.”
It was no different. But he stood his ground.
“We are going to end this war very quickly,” Trump said on May 19, at a Congressional picnic.
On May 23, he repeated the same pattern he had followed on April 17. He said the administration was in agreement. He said the agreement was in place. And he stated that the “final aspects” were being discussed.
On May 28, in an interview with his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, things were “close to a very good deal.”
And on Sunday, he assured that they were “very close to having a deal” but that Iran and Israel were putting that at risk by engaging in a parallel conflict.
he told Axios. “It’s going to be a good deal. I don’t want it to blow up because of what’s happening now.”
It was at least the third time Trump told Axios that a deal was imminent.
Then on Monday, during a phone rally for Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Trump again predicted a “total victory” in the next two weeks.
“We’re negotiating now; they want to make a very good deal,” Trump said.
Then he added: “They are willing to give us everything.”
