00:00You addressed this a little bit in the opening, but just to follow up, because Americans are
00:03sort of seeing these conflicting messages between the United States and Iran. I know the president
00:07insists that negotiations are underway. As you just mentioned, he's also said that Iran has
00:11agreed to most of the 15 points. We just heard from Iran, again, they're saying no negotiations
00:16are taking place. They're calling the proposal excessive, unrealistic. So how do you square
00:22that? What is, how do you explain that discrepancy between the two? I think the American people are
00:26smart enough not to take the word of a terrorist regime that has chanted death to America for
00:3147 years at their word. And I hope the journalists in this room are wise enough not to take an
00:37Iranian regime that has repeatedly lied about our country, about our values, about everyone
00:43in this room, frankly, for nearly five decades. So I think the American public are smart enough
00:48to understand that. Just to follow up on the objectives, you've
00:51laid them out, but I know the president has set a deadline for April 6th in just one week.
00:56What does the president need to see to not move forward with those strikes by April 6th?
01:00Well, I think he said it in his true social post this morning. He wants to see a deal over
01:04the next 10 days. That timeline is waning, several days left, and we'll see. I won't get ahead
01:11of it. We'll see what happens in the end of the 10-day period.
01:14Caroline, thank you. One on Iran, one on the shutdown. The president continues to say the U.S.
01:19is in conversations with a more reasonable regime, but there are now hundreds of U.S.
01:25special operations forces, including Navy SEALs and Army Rangers in the Middle East,
01:29as well as thousands of other troops already deployed. So is he trying to end or intensify
01:34the conflict? The president is focused on achieving the objectives of Operation Epic Fury.
01:40With respect to forces that are on the ground in the Middle East, it's the job of the Pentagon
01:45to create maximum optionality for the commander-in-chief. It does not mean the president
01:50has made any additional decisions. Again, he remains focused on ensuring that the Pentagon
01:55continues to achieve the objectives of the operation. That was launched 30 days ago,
02:00and we're well on our way to doing that. So if an American sit at home hearing him say,
02:04I want to talk, but I keep seeing them send troops to that region, what are they to make of
02:09what's
02:09going on? There's two tracks here. The president has always said that diplomacy
02:13is his number one option and priority. Again, he tried earnestly, in good faith,
02:19to engage in diplomacy with the Iranian regime prior to this operation being launched in the
02:24first place. He wanted to strike a deal, and he sent his top negotiators to do so. They spent
02:30extensive amount of time and effort trying to strike a deal, and unfortunately, the previous regime,
02:36again, many of those leaders no longer with us here on Earth because they faced the consequences
02:41of the United States military. So if there's ever a chance for a deal, again, the president is open
02:46to listening, but it does not deter him from focusing on the military objectives that he set
02:51out 30 days ago and that our military is continuing to achieve day by day.
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