Vice President JD Vance, who built his political career partly on opposition to American military interventions abroad, argued forcefully for a large-scale attack on Iran during a pivotal White House Situation Room meeting on Feb. 18, according to people familiar with his remarks.
As reported by "Hvylya", citing the New York Times investigation, Vance told President Trump and senior officials that a limited strike would be a mistake. If the United States was going to hit Iran, he said, it should "go big and go fast."
The meeting brought together the administration's top national security figures - Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine. General Caine laid out a range of options, from a limited strike designed to pressure Iran at the negotiating table to a full-scale campaign aimed at toppling the government. He warned that the larger option carried a high risk of American casualties, could destabilize the region, and would significantly deplete U.S. munitions stockpiles.
Before the meeting, Trump had appeared to lean toward a phased approach - a smaller strike first, followed by a bigger one if Iran refused to give up nuclear enrichment. But Vance's arguments appeared to shift his thinking. In the days that followed, more officials moved toward the idea that the United States and Israel should target not just Iran's missile and nuclear programs, but the leadership itself.
General Caine also underscored that all options under consideration would be far more difficult than the successful capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in January - an operation Trump viewed as a template for potential success in Iran. A spokesman for Vance declined to comment on his remarks.
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