(CNN) - US President Donald Trump said this week that he does not believe peace will be achieved with Iran, during an interview a little more than a month before Republicans face a critical test of how much confidence Americans have in their leadership.
The interview, which was published by Time magazine on Thursday, covers the president's views on the war with Iran, the renovation work in the White House, the dispute over the Kennedy Center, his disappointment with his choices of Supreme Court justices, as well as the possibility of issuing a preemptive pardon for members of his administration.
Trump finds himself today in a different political landscape than when he gave his previous interview with Time magazine in April 2025. He told the magazine at the time that he was not afraid that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would drag the United States into a possible war with Iran, because he was prepared to fight that war “willingly” if it was not possible to reach a nuclear agreement with Tehran.
Trump: “Annihilating Iran” has “brought peace to the world”
As the war with Iran continues and the US mediators attempt to bring Iran back to the negotiating table, Trump has hinted that it will never be possible to achieve peace with that country.
Trump said: “By annihilating Iran, we have achieved peace in the world,” adding: “I do not believe that peace can be achieved with Iran in place.”
When asked about his repeated threats to “annihilate” Iran, Trump kept the door open to this possibility, saying: “Yes, I will do that. It is possible.”
Just one day before the interview with Time magazine, Trump told Axios that he expected to hold more talks with that country.
With about 7 months having passed since the war with Iran, a recent poll conducted by CNN showed that three-quarters of American adults believe that the president lacks a clear plan to deal with the situation, and that 78% of them believe that he is not making enough efforts to end this war.
At the end of the 75-minute interview in the Oval Office, Trump seemed clearly frustrated with the questions from Time magazine reporters, saying: “You did not ask me a single positive question... All of this... What about this? What about that? What about that? What about this? It’s all negative.”
Possibility of issuing a pre-emptive presidential pardon
Trump also stated that he would consider issuing a pardon to members of his administration before the end of his term, saying: “Yes, I certainly will do that,” adding that former President Joe Biden “granted a pardon to everyone.”
Before leaving office, Biden issued several proactive pardon decisions, which included granting clemency to General Mark Milley, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and members of Congress who participated in the committee investigating the events of January 6, as well as members of his family. This is based on his belief that the Trump administration will target them with prosecution.
The pace of seeking pardons has increased significantly under the Trump administration. The president himself has taken an increasingly personal role in the clemency process, using his clemency powers at a historically unprecedented pace to help his allies and advance his own political grievances agenda.
In the interview with Time magazine, Trump said that if Republicans lose control of the House of Representatives in November, Democrats “will probably go after me, and I will go after them.”
Trump does not rule out demolishing the Kennedy Center
During the interview, Trump repeatedly refused to rule out the option of demolishing the Kennedy Center, in light of the ongoing legal dispute surrounding the arts institution and employees being told to conduct a safety review of the building.
Asked if he was ready to demolish the center, Trump said: “It's in very bad shape. I'm ready to save it, but it's in very bad shape; only I can save it.”
When asked again whether he would pledge not to use demolition machines to destroy the building, Trump said: "I won't pledge anything. We'll see how it goes in court."
He was photographed earlier this month examining a poster that appeared to suggest the idea of demolishing the Kennedy Center; The situation is still pending legal proceedings.
Late Wednesday evening, the center's executive director, Matt Floca, sent an email to the small group of remaining employees, explaining that the building itself "remains temporarily closed" after specialized teams assessed its condition.
