President Donald Trump received a high-level military briefing Thursday as his administration considers launching another round of major attacks against Iran, according to an exclusive report from The Wall Street Journal.
Adm. Brad Cooper, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, made a rare in-person visit to the White House to discuss potential military operations, the Journal reported, citing U.S. officials and others familiar with the meeting.
Cooper was joined by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chief Chairman Gen. Dan Caine. The meeting also covered other topics, according to the report.
The unusual gathering came as the U.S. weighs “resuming major combat operations,” the Journal reported Thursday. It followed a separate White House meeting a day earlier when military leaders met with Vice President JD Vance.
Vance has reportedly reached out to one of Iran’s most powerful hard-liners in an effort to revive peace negotiations, according to the report, suggesting the administration is still pursuing diplomatic efforts even as it considers new military strikes.
But Trump himself recently raised the prospect of renewed strikes.
“We may do another little Epic Fury,” Trump said at a rally last week, referring to the earlier U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran.
The possibility of renewed strikes has also alarmed some lawmakers, including Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), who said he had been briefed on some of the classified military planning and called the plans "insane."
"It will lead to devastating escalation and the likely destruction of our commitment to the rule of law," Murphy warned.