Trump Faces Republican Backlash Over Proposed Iran Peace Deal

US President Donald Trump is facing resistance from within his own Republican Party over a proposed peace agreement with Iran, with several senior lawmakers warning that any deal allowing Tehran to retain strategic influence or nuclear capability would weaken US interests in the region.

The criticism from Republican senators, along with objections from some Democrats, comes as the Trump administration explores a framework to end the nearly three-month conflict with Iran. According to PTI, sceptics within the Republican Party argued that the proposal risked recognising Tehran as a dominant regional force while relying on diplomacy with a government they do not trust to uphold commitments.

Trump rejected the criticism in a Truth Social post on Sunday, saying opponents were attacking negotiations that were not yet complete.

“If I make a deal with Iran, it will be a good and proper one, not like the one made by Obama, which gave Iran massive amounts of CASH, and a clear and open path to a Nuclear Weapon,” Trump said.

“Our deal is the exact opposite, but nobody has seen it, or knows what it is. It isn’t even fully negotiated yet. So don’t listen to the losers, who are critical about something they know nothing about,” he added.

According to PTI, Republican critics included Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Roger Wicker, along with Senators Thom Tillis, Lindsey Graham and Ted Cruz, all of whom questioned whether Iran could be trusted to comply with any agreement.

Cruz said he was “deeply concerned” about the direction of the talks and warned against any outcome in which Iran retained control of the Strait of Hormuz and the ability to enrich uranium.

“If the result of all that is to be an Iranian regime still run by Islamists who chant 'death to America' now receiving billions of dollars, being able to enrich uranium & develop nuclear weapons, and having effective control over the Strait of Hormuz, then that outcome would be a disastrous mistake,” Cruz wrote on X on Saturday.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who served during Trump’s first term, also criticised the emerging framework, saying it resembled the Obama-era nuclear deal.

“The deal being floated with Iran seems straight out of the Wendy Sherman-Robert Malley-Ben Rhodes playbook: Pay the IRGC to build a WMD program and terrorise the world,” Pompeo wrote on X.

“Not remotely America First. It's straightforward: Open the damned strait. Deny Iran access to money. Take out enough Iranian capability so it cannot threaten our allies in the region. Overdue. Let's go,” he added.

Reported PTI, Trump adviser Steven Cheung responded sharply to Pompeo’s remarks, saying the former secretary of state did not know the details of the negotiations.

“He should shut his stupid mouth and leave the real work to the professionals. He's not read into anything that’s happening, so how would he know,” said Cheung, the White House communications director, in a post on X.

Lindsey Graham, one of Trump’s closest allies in the Senate, warned that any agreement seen as allowing Iran to survive with future control over the Strait of Hormuz would strengthen Hezbollah in Lebanon and Shia militias in Iraq.

Wicker also raised concerns over reports of a proposed 60-day ceasefire, saying such a move would undermine recent military gains.

“Everything accomplished by Operation Epic Fury would be for nought,” Wicker said.

Democratic senators also criticised the proposed agreement, arguing that Trump was effectively being “played as a fool” and that the framework risked restoring the “pre-war status quo”, PTI reported.

In contrast, Republican Senator Rand Paul urged patience and defended the administration’s diplomatic efforts.

“War virtually always ends with negotiations. Critics of President Trump's peace negotiations should give President Trump the space to find an American First solution,” Paul said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson also backed the White House approach and cautioned against judging the agreement before its full details were released.

Speaking on “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Sunday, Johnson said he was “confident” the deal would “take care of the nuclear dust” and praised Trump’s “resolute” approach towards curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

(With inputs from PTI)