NATO leadership and Donald Trump have not always seen eye-to-eye, but most leadership in the group is now slapping Trump on the back for his recent strike against Iran.
Trump has hammered NATO membership in the past for not paying their fair share, and NATO leadership has criticized Trump for it.
That was not the case during the most recent meeting.
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte gushed over Trump during the summit, calling Trump a “man of strength” and a “man of peace.”
He stated, "I just want to recognize your decisive action on Iran. You are a man of strength, but you are also a man of peace."
Rutte continued, “And the fact that you are now also successful in getting this ceasefire done between Israel and Iran— I really want to commend you for that. I think this is important for the whole world."
The NATO leader had previously texted Trump, which Trump shared on Truth Social, with one of them stating, "Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran, that was truly extraordinary, and something no one else dared to do. It makes us all safer.”
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Jeb Bush and Donald Trump regularly traded blows, with Bush and his entire family coming out on the short end of the exchange.
This time, it was much different, with Bush patting Trump on the back for hitting Iran.
Bush, who is now the chairman of the organization United Against Nuclear Iran, wrote, "We applaud President Trump and the United States for this decision—one of the most important of the 21st century.”
The statement continued, "President Trump’s decision to neutralize Iran’s regime’s nuclear program is a watershed moment -- one that reasserts American strength, restores deterrence, and sends an unmistakable message to rogue regimes: the era of impunity is over. Where others delayed and wavered, President Trump acted.”
During Donald Trump’s first administration, many of his former staffers blasted him after leaving the administration.
The leader of that pack was John Bolton, who served as Trump’s National Security Advisor. While he has taken some pretty big shots at Trump in the past, he was very complimentary regarding this strike.
In part, he stated, “I think this is a huge change in the Middle East. It was a decisive action. It was the right thing to do. I thought somebody should do it for a long time. But better late than never.”
This is a big win for Trump, as it completely flipped the news cycle in terms of the negative headlines he has been getting, and it shows that the GOP is capable of uniting, even around Trump. Right now, this administration has all the momentum, so let’s just hope it can keep it going to ride to a House and Senate win in 2026.
