President Donald Trump should take "decisive action" against Iran to deter further aggression by Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and "his henchman," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., tweeted Tuesday.
Graham tweeted:
"The problems with Iran only get worse over time so it is imperative we take decisive action to deter further aggression by the Ayatollah and his henchman."
"The measured response by President @realDonaldTrump regarding the shooting down of an American drone was clearly seen by the Iranian regime as a sign of weakness."
Graham's comments come as the Trump administration weighs a range of options for retaliatory action against Iran, including a physical strike on Iranian oil facilities or cyberattack, following a drone assault on Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure that Trump's aides blamed on Iran.
Graham called Iran's actions "an act of war and the goal should be to restore deterrence against Iranian aggression which has clearly been lost."
"I applaud the administration’s efforts to create a regional coalition, thoroughly brief the Congress on the actions taken, and come up with a plan of action to restore deterrence against an evil regime in Iran," he added.
But later Tuesday, the president fired back.
"No Lindsey, it was a sign of strength that some people just don’t understand!" he tweeted.
Iran called the U.S. claims, "maximum lies" and threatened American forces in the region. The attack dimmed hopes for nuclear talks between Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani at the United Nations General Assembly.
The attack Saturday on Saudi Arabia’s Abqaiq plant and its Khurais oil field led to the interruption of an estimated 5.7 million barrels of the kingdom’s crude oil production per day.
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