Anthony Scaramucci, who briefly served as White House communications director, has a message for the Trump administration: stop telling us the Iran War is over when it clearly isn't.
In a post on X Wednesday, Scaramucci went after President Donald Trump's repeated declarations of victory, sharing a video where he laid out the contradictions between the administration's rhetoric and the reality on the ground.
"The Trump administration keeps lying to us about the end of the Iran War," he wrote.
In the clip, Scaramucci couldn't hide his exasperation. "I thought we won the war. This is the 107th time that we've won the war and they're totally decimated," he said, mocking the administration's tendency to declare mission accomplished.
His point: if we've won that many times, why is the region still a mess? He cited two glaring examples. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments, remains closed. And the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve is sitting at its lowest level since 1983.
"Yet the Strait of Hormuz is closed and our strategic petroleum reserve is at the lowest level that it's been since 1983," Scaramucci said.
He also took aim at Trump's justification for the June 2025 strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. The president had said those bunker-buster bombs eliminated the nuclear threat. Scaramucci isn't buying it.
"He dropped those bunker-buster bombs in June of 2025 and said that he eliminated the nuclear threat. So ultimately, we really don't know what he's doing," he said.
And he's not just blaming the White House. Scaramucci also called out Congress for failing to step up. "There's no push inside the Congress to help us figure out what he's doing or what the motivation is," he added.
The criticism comes as the administration shifts gears. Last week, Trump decided to pause planned strikes on Iran, opting instead to pursue a nuclear deal. Former Trump counterterrorism chief Joe Kent backed that move, warning that military action could lead to a "catastrophic escalation."
Kent urged Trump to withdraw U.S. troops and use sanctions relief as leverage to push Iran toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said negotiations would focus on reopening the key shipping route and ending Iran's nuclear program. He claimed he paused the "locked and loaded" military operation after Iran and regional allies asked for more time to talk.
Iran, for its part, denied requesting the pause. Tensions remain high, with the threat of strikes and disruptions to global oil supplies still hanging over the region.
So, is the war over? Depends on who you ask. The administration says yes. Scaramucci, and the closed Strait of Hormuz, suggest otherwise.
