Trump under pressure to de-escalate tensions with Iran ahead of press conference

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Trump: says no American soldier died in Iran's missile attacks

Trump: under pressure fom Republican allies to tone down Iranian reactions

Republican senators have reportedly called on US President Donald Trump to tone down his reactions on the Iranian missiles attacks, ahead of Trump’s press conference on Wednesday.

Trump last tweeted ‘all is well, so far so good” more than 12 hours ago before his press conference at at 12.30pm Washingto D.C time.

According to thehill.com, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a top ally of Trump’s in the Senate, said in a string of tweets that “retaliation for the sake of retaliation is not necessary at this time.”

“What is necessary is to lay out our strategic objectives regarding Iran in a simple and firm fashion,” Graham added.

The objectives, according to Graham, should be stopping Iran’s ballistic missile program and preventing Iran from building a nuclear weapon and supporting of terrorist organizations.

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) added that Trump should “de-escalate” and come to Congress on any potential next steps.

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“Whether further military action is warranted is a question that should be answered by Congress. The U.S. should seek to deescalate these raised tensions and I will continue to push to bring our troops back from the region,” Lee said.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) praised Trump for not immediately reacting to the Iranian missile strikes on Tuesday night, specifying that while he believes Trump will “protect American lives and interests” he also wants to “avoid conflict or needless loss of life.”

“I believe the President wants to avoid conflict or needless loss of life but he’s rightly prepared to protect American lives and interests and I hope Iran’s leaders do not miscalculate by questioning our collective will in launching further attacks,” McConnell said.

McConnell, who spoke with Trump last night about Iran’s missile attacks, added that the United States has “the power to exercise restraint and respond at the time and the place of our choosing, if necessary.”

The calls for Trump to de-escalate comes as mounting tensions between the United States and Iran have dominated Washington over the past week.–thehill.com

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