'That is not who we are': Some Republicans break with Trump over Iran threats

Source: ABC News

April 7, 2026, 5:08 PM


With hours until President Donald Trump's self-imposed Tuesday night deadline for Iran to make a deal or face U.S. attacks, lawmakers are reacting to the president's latest threats and wipe out a "whole civilization" -- with some Republicans speaking out against Trump's words.

Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson broke with Trump on his threats to bomb Iran's civilian infrastructure, saying in a podcast, "I hope and pray" he is "using this as bluster."

"I do not want to see us start blowing up civilian infrastructure ... We are not at war with the Iranian people. We are trying to liberate them," Johnson, a Trump ally who rarely breaks with the president, said on the "John Solomon Reports" podcast out on Monday.

Texas Republican Rep. Nathaniel Moran said in a post on X that he does not support "the destruction of a 'whole civilization'" -- a reference to Trump's social media post on Tuesday in which he threatened that a "whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again" although he said "I don't want that to happen.". "That is not who we are, and it is not consistent with the principles that have long guided America," Moran wrote.

Read more: https://abcnews.com/Politics/trump-ally-sen-ron-johnson-breaks-president-iran/story?id=131800928