OCTOBER SURPRISE?

Leak Reveals Trump Plot for Stunning Election-Day Surprise

The president is plotting a major move as his party faces disaster.

Desperate Donald Trump is considering fresh military strikes against Iran before the midterm elections in a desperate bid to win back wavering Republican voters, according to an explosive new report.

The 80-year-old president has repeatedly suggested that the war, which began in February, could intensify after the Nov. 3 elections. But the White House has now instructed the Pentagon to prepare options for attacks that could take place before Americans head to the polls, The Atlantic reported Wednesday.

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Two administration officials told the magazine that military planners have been instructed to identify possible targets. This has raised the prospect of Trump restarting major hostilities weeks before an election in which his unpopular war has become a major drag on Republican candidates.

U.S. Central Command is developing the proposals, the report says, although the administration has not settled on the scale of any operation or whether to proceed at all.

The Pentagon had already presented Trump with options for escalating the conflict after the election, including major attacks on Iranian energy facilities, the report said. The new planning raises the possibility of military action before voters head to the polls.

Some Trump allies believe another show of military force could give the president a political victory to trumpet before Election Day and help the GOP retain control of Congress. “It would make the president look like he got a win and that gas prices would start going down,” a person familiar with the discussions told The Atlantic.

But the outlet reports that the gamble carries enormous risks.

The conflict has already driven up fuel costs, damaged Trump’s standing with voters and created headaches for Republican candidates facing increasingly difficult races. Americans are paying an average of $4.37 per gallon for gasoline, compared with less than $3 before the conflict began.

Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton privately blamed the Iran war and soaring fuel prices for his campaign’s difficulties, telling donors that affordability was “by far our biggest problem,” in his fight against Democrat James Talarico, Axios reported.

Another American attack could also trigger Iranian retaliation against approximately 50,000 U.S. military personnel stationed across the region, according to The Atlantic.

While Trump’s aides hope renewed strikes might create the impression of progress, even supporters of the idea accept they are unlikely to produce an immediate breakthrough in negotiations or cut fuel prices.

Trump has hinted that the fighting could resume before voters head to the ballot box. Last week, he predicted that America would prevail “right after the election,” before adding: “Maybe before the election.”

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The president also told Time that the U.S. had been replenishing its military armory for months, in preparation for another possible escalation. The Atlantic reports that Trump has become increasingly annoyed by his inability to secure a decisive outcome, while advisers remain divided over whether further attacks should wait until after the election.

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A White House official told The Atlantic that Trump “has all options available at any time,” but declined to address whether strikes were being considered before the midterms.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and Pentagon for comment.

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