Rubio's war remarks blow open MAGA's Israel divide

"And we knew that if we didn't preemptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties ... And then we would all be here answering questions about why we knew that and didn't act. Obviously, we were aware of Israeli intentions and understood what that would mean for us, and we had to be prepared to act as a result of it. But this had to happen no matter what."

"This operation needed to happen because Iran was developing too many missiles too quickly and was rebuilding its nuclear capabilities. Regardless of Israel, Trump ordered the strikes because he felt Iran was negotiating a nuclear deal in bad faith, and the U.S. needed to destroy the country's offensive military infrastructure."

"Rubio's remarks were widely interpreted as making the U.S. look subordinate to Israel's interests. And they inflamed already angry MAGA elites who had spent the day railing against President Trump's decision to go to war. On their podcasts and social media, frustrated pro-Trump influencers argued the president had become beholden to the military hawks and neocons he explicitly ran against."

Secretary of State Rubio explained that preemptive U.S. strikes on Iran were necessary to prevent higher casualties and avoid later criticism for inaction. He stated the U.S. was aware of Israeli intentions and had to prepare accordingly. However, U.S. officials later clarified that regardless of Israeli actions, Trump ordered the strikes because Iran was negotiating nuclear deals in bad faith and developing offensive military capabilities too rapidly. Rubio emphasized Iran's missile development and nuclear capability rebuilding as justification. His initial remarks were widely interpreted as portraying the U.S. as subordinate to Israeli interests, causing significant backlash among Trump supporters who felt the president had become beholden to military hawks and neoconservatives he opposed during his campaign.

Read at Axios