Over the past two weeks, President Donald Trump’s national security team met almost daily to discuss an emerging agreement aimed at ending the war with Iran, CNN reported, even as many officials doubted Tehran would keep its word. CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were among the most pessimistic about whether Iran would accept and honor significant concessions on its nuclear program, while almost every senior figure at points raised serious reservations, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President J.D. Vance, and Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
Despite those concerns, the team reached a Trump-led consensus that the United States should move forward. In a private White House meeting about two weeks ago, officials decided to press for a broad deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and set a wide framework for dismantling Iran’s nuclear program. One senior source said no one ultimately opposed proceeding, and the administration agreed to reassess the situation over a 60-day period of highly technical talks.
A source directly involved in the negotiations said the president’s view was decisive. “We ended the war because Donald Trump wanted to end the war, and felt he had enough to end the war,” the source said. “The whole administration is aligned on ending the war.” Another official said Ratcliffe often noted that CIA intelligence on Iran did not match the assurances Tehran was giving Washington, though the source stressed he was not making policy.
Officials described broad skepticism toward Iran inside the administration. One said, “They lie like we breathe,” adding that the expectation was that Tehran would try to avoid the deal. Still, the same official said the Iranians had privately said “all the right things,” which helped push the White House to advance. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Hegseth supports Trump’s peace objectives, while a White House statement said the memorandum of understanding meets long-standing red lines by ensuring Iran will never get nuclear weapons, keep enriched uranium, or hold the global energy supply “hostage.” White House chief of staff Susie Wiles was also described as a leading voice pushing to end the war, urging aides to be more candid with the president and, according to one source, wanting to “close this a long time ago.”
