Iran mocks JD Vance with 'losing gambler' jab, warns Trump is already 'prepping' for a new war

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf on Thursday took aim at US Vice-President JD Vance over his assessment of the Republican Party's crushing defeat in the 2026 midterm elections, accusing the Trump administration of prioritising Israel's interests over those of the United States and remaining unwilling to end the war against Iran. Responding to Vance's lengthy post on the Republican losses, Ghalibaf questioned the vice-president's position within the administration, pointing to his acknowledgement that the Iran war had contributed to the electoral setback. "Losing gambler energy, can't walk away from the table.

Boss is prepping the next war phase while America teeters on an Israel-First cliff. Skip the TED talk. Why not say this to your boss?" Ghalibaf wrote. Vance had openly blamed the conflict for the Republican Party's poor performance, arguing that voters who supported Donald Trump and him in the 2024 presidential election had switched sides in the midterms. "The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night," Vance wrote, adding that the party needed to acknowledge the electoral consequences of the conflict rather than attribute the defeat to poor voter turnout. He also cited conversations with pollsters who had asked former Republican voters what would persuade them to return to the party.

According to Vance, the four leading responses were: "End the war", focus on the cost of living and inflation, "Put America First" and change America's relationship with Israel. Ghalibaf's remarks focused on the apparent contradiction between Vance's criticism of the war's domestic political cost and his position as the vice-president in the Trump administration. His reference to the "next war phase" also challenged Washington's intentions as the conflict continues. Vance further argued that the Republican Party needed to address economic concerns and rejected attempts by some party members to use the defeat to advocate changes in immigration policy, particularly amnesty.

Meanwhile, Trump sought to play down the electoral setback in an interview with Fox News, saying: "But I don't view it as a hit on me." However, the president acknowledged that voters may have been unwilling to absorb the short-term economic consequences of higher petrol prices triggered by the Iran war. Democrats have captured control of both chambers of Congress, turning the election into a major setback for Trump and his administration. The results have also brought the political and economic costs of the Iran conflict into sharper focus in Washington.