President Trump told NBC’s Meet the Press he never promised there would be no wars if he returned to office and insisted recent action against Iran did not violate his “no new wars” message. He defended withdrawing from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal and supported a proposed roughly $1.8 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” tied to an IRS settlement that the Justice Department later abandoned. Trump repeated unproven claims about California’s primary count, sparred with Kristen Welker over evidence, and abruptly ended the rain-disrupted interview after criticizing the press.
Trump Says Iran Action Doesn’t Break His ‘No New Wars’ Pledge, Defends $1.8B Fund and Repeats Unproven Election Claims
President Donald Trump speaks at Custer Farms in Chippewa Falls, Wis., Friday, June 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — President Donald Trump told NBC’s Meet the Press that he never guaranteed there would be no new wars if he returned to the White House and defended recent U.S. action against Iran as necessary to prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
No New Wars Pledge
In an interview taped Friday in Wisconsin and broadcast Sunday, Trump rejected the suggestion that the campaign’s refrain of “no new wars” meant an absolute promise. He said, “First of all, I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world?”
Claims About Iran
Trump characterized the confrontation with Iran — which he said began Feb. 28 — as limited and not an “endless war.” He argued U.S. strikes were justified to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon and at times offered more expansive language, saying that earlier strikes had “obliterated” Iranian nuclear sites.
On the Iran Nuclear Deal
He also defended his 2018 decision to withdraw the United States from the Obama-era nuclear agreement with Iran, saying that negotiating any replacement would take years. “It takes years to do these things,” he told NBC.
President Donald Trump arrives to speak to reporters aboard Air Force One en route from Joint Base Andrews, Md., to Eau Claire, Wis., Friday, June 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
California Primary Fraud Claims
Trump repeated unproven assertions of widespread fraud related to California’s prolonged primary vote count, saying late-arriving, Democratic-leaning mail ballots were evidence of cheating. NBC’s Kristen Welker pressed him for concrete evidence; Trump cited reports and listeners’ accounts. The Los Angeles U.S. attorney, a Trump appointee, said his office had opened multiple election-fraud investigations, but election experts note that late changes in California tallies typically reflect administrative processing of mail ballots rather than fraud.
Anti-Weaponization Fund And Jan. 6
Trump defended a proposed settlement component described by his team as an “Anti-Weaponization Fund,” variously reported at about $1.8 billion ($1.776 billion in some reports). The plan — tied to a lawsuit over leaked tax returns — was paused by a judge and later abandoned by the Justice Department amid bipartisan concerns about oversight and the potential for payouts to participants in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
When asked whether people who attacked police on Jan. 6 should receive payments, Trump said, “I wouldn’t be inclined to say so, but I have to see it.” He later issued broad pardons on his first day back in office in January 2025 for more than 1,500 people prosecuted over Jan. 6.
Interview Setting And Abrupt End
The Meet the Press taping took place in a barn in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, before a farmers’ roundtable. Heavy rain repeatedly pounded the barn’s metal roof, at times making audio difficult to hear. As Welker pressed him on the settlement fund and his election claims, Trump became increasingly agitated, attacked the media’s credibility, and ended the interview abruptly — removing his microphone and walking away after saying, “Let’s call it quits.”
The interview covers a range of contested claims and policy defenses; several of Trump’s assertions about election fraud remain unproven, and the Justice Department ultimately did not pursue the proposed fund.
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