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Despite President Trump's Iran war peace deal, suspiciously announced on the weekend of his birthday, Republican campaign consultants and candidates are still bracing for a GOP midterm disaster, convinced that voter economic anxiety has hardened beyond repair before voters head to the polls.

GOP insiders close to the White House openly acknowledge that even if gas prices drop, the damage is already done. Voter perceptions of economic hardship are "baked in and irreversible," according to Republicans interviewed for Politico reporting.

According to the report, the political math is shaping up to be devastating for Republicans. Trump and the GOP were already grappling with affordability concerns before the Iran war began at the end of February. Merely returning to pre-war economic conditions won't be enough to shift voter sentiment, GOP strategists argue—particularly given that economic anxiety is the primary driver of midterm voting behavior.

"Economically, I don't think there's time. I think it's too late, essentially, to really change a voter's mood," confided one Republican to Politico. "But I mean, hey, I'll take it. We'll take whatever we get, right?"

The White House strategy is now damage control: laser-focused messaging that Trump improved the economy in his first term and can do it again—and that now the war is over, economic recovery can resume.

"The argument is: Trump improved the economy in the first term, he can do it again, he knows how to do it, and now the war is over, we're going to get back to it," said a White House insider. "The economic trend pre-war was actually pretty decent. Could we get back to it fast enough? I don't think so, but let's try."

However, as Politico is reporting, the Iran deal's durability is uncertain. While the U.S. and Iran have digitally signed a framework agreement to end the war, neither side has published the text, leaving critical questions unanswered about tolls for strait transiting and Iran's nuclear commitments. Israel's stated plan to remain "indefinitely" in Lebanon further threatens the agreement's viability.

A senior U.S. official acknowledged that Hormuz would be "open toll-free for 60 days," with permanent reopening remaining one of many ongoing negotiation points. Oil tanker owners remain hesitant to transit the strait due to mines and attack risks, the official conceded.

"I think we'll get a very long way there over the next couple of weeks, but it's going to take a little time because you have some crews that are extremely risk averse," the official told Politico.

Gas price relief faces a ceiling regardless. Global oil inventories have been thoroughly drained to multi-decade lows—the market is missing more than a billion gallons of crude oil supply. If the deal holds, prices could dip below $4 a gallon, according to Bob McNally, head of energy consulting firm Rapidan Energy and a former George W. Bush administration energy adviser. But low inventories will eventually reverse that trend.

If negotiations fracture, prices could spike above $5 a gallon. Either way, volatility will likely persist beyond summer as new oil supply reaches markets.

For Republicans facing midterm voters already convinced the economy is broken, even temporary gas price relief may come "too little, too late," Politico's Megan Messerly and Scott Waldman wrote.

Key Republican lawmakers are expressing alarm and frustration over President Donald Trump's refusal to share details of his Iran peace agreement, particularly after Vice President JD Vance revealed the entire deal consists of just one and a half pages.

According to Politico reporter Jordain Carney and Connor O'Brien, GOP lawmakers—especially Iran hawks—are demanding a say in what the president is agreeing to, particularly after Trump dispatched Vance to sign the accord without Senate input.

GOP senators are operating in an "information vacuum," forced to raise concerns and issue uncharacteristic criticism of the White House for keeping them in the dark about a potentially historic agreement.

The frustration is bipartisan in its origins. Even most Republicans agree: Congress needs the details immediately, and any agreement affecting Iran's nuclear program must eventually face a congressional vote.

"If you want a deal to last, it can't be an executive agreement," said Sen. James Lankford (R-OK). "We've got to have a vote of Congress to be able to solidify it long term."

Trump withdrew from the original Iran nuclear agreement in his first term. Now he's back with a deal that—pending text release and final negotiations—could mirror Obama's Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). That prospect has infuriated both defense hawks who despised the original agreement and Democrats who believe Trump should never have abandoned it, Politico is reporting.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a prominent defense hawk, told reporters he was "pulling for a deal" while simultaneously raising red flags about serious discrepancies in the terms being described.

"The MOU being described by us sounds really very good; the MOU being described by Iran sounds awful," Graham said, highlighting the fundamental problem: no one knows what's actually in the agreement.

Graham pressed the core issue: "If they can enrich uranium anywhere at all, then it's the same as JCPOA. If they can't enrich, then that makes it a good deal. I'm skeptical that Iran will ever go there to cease enrichment."

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) acknowledged the lack of transparency, admitting Monday there is "probably some expectation" his chamber would eventually vote on the agreement.

"I just don't know enough about it yet, and I don't think even the people who follow this stuff closely up here know that much about it," Thune said, indicating the administration would brief members at some point.

According to the report, Capitol Hill frustration is mounting. Senators expressed exasperation that the text of the signed agreement hasn't been released.

"If it's a secret deal, then how can I take it seriously?" Sen. Thom Tillis (R-North Carolina) asked bluntly.