What did Trump say about the Iran war after acknowledging its impact on the election results?

US President Donald Trump expressed conditional support for the assessment of Vice President J.D. Vance, who attributed the Republican loss in the midterm elections to the war with Iran.

Trump said, in response to a question about Vance’s statements, while he was at the construction site of the new White House Ballroom: “I think that is largely true, because the war led to gasoline prices going up a little bit in the short term.”

Trump added: "At the same time, if I had the opportunity to make the decision again, I would do the same thing, because it is the only long-term solution. Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon."

Vance had said, in a lengthy post on social media, earlier Wednesday, that “the real reason for our loss is clear to almost everyone,” pointing to the war with Iran as the reason behind the heavy losses suffered by Republicans.

"If you want to say it was worth it, and losing the Senate for the next six years was a price worth paying, then go for it," Vance wrote. "Say it was a price worth paying. Agree or disagree, that's at least an honest position."

On Wednesday, Trump responded to this challenge, stressing that the war was worth fighting, when he was asked about it. “Yes, I guess so,” he said. “I mean, well, we had no choice.”

Trump also insisted that he was not "even the slightest" concerned about the possibility that Democrats in Congress - after strengthening their influence - would seek to remove him from office again.

Trump told reporters, "Doing so will destroy the Democratic Party. Impeachment is for no reason... Why? Because we have a successful country? Our country today is more successful than at any time in its history."

Trump then suddenly asked reporters to "watch the bar go up," as he reviewed construction work on his pet project.

Trump appeared in public in front of the cameras for the first time since the Republicans' heavy losses in the midterm elections, from the construction site of the new ballroom in the East Wing of the White House, a project that occupied a large part of his second presidential term, and which he often bragged to his supporters during his election campaign.

Holding a microphone, Trump spoke about the soaring ceilings and Corinthian-style columns, while standing in front of a plaque signed by construction workers involved in the project.