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Sunday shows preview: Trump ups threats on Iran after saying war ‘near completion’

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by Sophie Brams - 04/04/26 6:09 PM ET

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by Sophie Brams - 04/04/26 6:09 PM ET

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President Trump escalated his warnings to Tehran on Saturday, threatening to rain “all hell” down on the country as the U.S. barrels toward a self-imposed Monday deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Time is running out – 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them. Glory be to GOD!”

The renewed pressure comes as U.S. forces are conducting a frantic search-and-rescue mission for an American service member downed over Iranian territory.

Two crew members were ejected from an F-15E Strike Eagle after being shot down by Iranian forces on Friday, the first known instance of an American plane being downed inside the country since the conflict began in late February.

One service member was rescued by U.S. forces, according to a U.S. official. The status of the second service member is unknown.

A U.S. Air Force UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter and a second search-and-rescue helicopter were struck during the recovery operations but were able to escape, a source familiar with the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity to share operational matters, told The Hill.

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) argued that the downed planes showed Iran was “winning the war,” even as President Trump claimed in a primetime address to the nation earlier this week that Operation Epic Fury was nearing completion.

“And now, just a day after he told the entire world –– all the American people –– that they had successfully taken out all of Iran’s anti-aircraft capability, they’ve shot not just one but two aircraft out of the sky,” Moulton, who sits on the House Armed Services Committee, said on Friday.

“So, obviously, Trump is way in over his head. He has no idea what he’s doing, and he’s lying to us once again.”

Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have repeatedly asserted that the U.S. has achieved aerial dominance and degraded Iran’s combat capabilities.

“Their air force is gone. Their missiles are just about used up or beaten. Taken together, these actions will cripple Iran’s military, crush their ability to support terrorist proxies and deny them the ability to build a nuclear bomb,” the president told Americans on Wednesday, insisting the U.S. was close to achieving its military objectives.

That rhetoric has been mocked by Iranian leaders, who have vowed to continue retaliating against U.S. and Israeli attacks.

“After defeating Iran 37 times in a row, this brilliant no-strategy war they started has now been downgraded from ‘regime change’ to ‘Hey! Can anyone find our pilots? Please?’” Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf wrote in a Friday morning post on the social platform X.

“Wow. What incredible progress. Absolute geniuses.”

Trump has been upping the pressure on Tehran to make a peace deal, hinting that the country’s bridges and electrical infrastructure could become targets if the country refuses to negotiate.

The U.S. military struck the B1 bridge in north-central Iran twice on Thursday, an attack Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said would “not compel Iranians to surrender.”

“It only conveys the defeat and moral collapse of an enemy in disarray. Every bridge and building will be built back stronger. What will never recover: damage to America’s standing,” Araghchi wrote on X.

The Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint that carries a fifth of the world’s oil supply, has remained at the epicenter of the conflict and Trump’s frustration with European allies.

The president told The Telegraph in an interview published on Wednesday that U.S. membership in NATO was “beyond reconsideration” amid Europe’s reluctance to send warships to help secure the strait.

“I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin knows that too, by the way,” Trump said.

The Iranian government has also mocked Trump’s talk of “regime change” in the country, with the Iranian Embassy in South Africa posting a photo on Friday of U.S. military officials, with some of their faces crossed out.

“The regime change happened successfully. MAGA,” the embassy wrote on X.

The jab was an apparent reference to recent personnel changes at the Pentagon, including the reported firing of Army chief of staff Gen. Randy George. Hegseth has dismissed more than a dozen senior military officers since the start of his term.