Former Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., stated Sunday that while hopes remain high for a peace agreement involving Iran, more work still needs to be done before the conflict can be considered resolved.
During a recent discussion with former Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., King noted that President Donald Trump’s messaging on Truth Social left some uncertainty about the administration’s next move.
“You’re never quite certain exactly what signal President Trump is sending,” King said.
King described the overall effort as successful so far but not complete. “It’s more of a we move the ball down the field,” he added. “Still more has to be done, but it could well be that the president will accept a truce, if you call it now and with more to be done later.”
Kingston said concerns from Republicans, such as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, that Iran could benefit from a peace agreement are understandable, but he defended Trump’s experience in handling Middle East relations.
“He’s not somebody who just happens to be dabbling in it. He knows the Middle East,” Kingston stated. “I think Ronald Reagan said, trust, but verify. In the Middle East, you can say, don’t trust and always verify.”
Kingston added that reopening the Strait of Hormuz and curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions and support for terrorism could eventually lead to a broader working relationship with the region.
The discussion also turned to security concerns near the White House following another shooting incident in Washington involving a suspect with a history of mental health issues.
Kingston said public officials face growing risks from politically charged rhetoric and unstable individuals. “You have this constant vigilance because you do have a radicalized left,” he explained. “And then you have the mental instability types. God bless anybody in elected office right now because you have to be very, very careful.”
King, the former chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, noted that law enforcement can only do so much to monitor potential threats and suggested courts should take a tougher approach toward individuals with violent tendencies.
“I do think the courts should perhaps be stricter as far as confining people,” King said. “If a person shows any strong violent tendencies, especially in a political or racial sense, to me, there should be more confinement of them, certainly more constant supervision today.”
King also noted that the latest suspect had a “very, very troublesome past” and warned that threats against public officials remain difficult to prevent fully.
“With all the security, with all the protections, it’s not ironclad,” King added. “You have to constantly be on your guard.”
