GOP senator says Trump should bring Iran war to an end

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) on Monday said President Trump should end the Iran war as the conflict hit its seven-month mark, during which gas prices have soared and contributed to Americans’ concerns over the cost of living.

Capito made the remarks during an interview with “NewsNation Live” host Connell McShane on NewsNation, The Hill’s broadcast partner. McShane asked her about Republican Senate candidates drawing contrast or splitting with Trump on the conflict, which has seen its support from GOP lawmakers falter.

“I think that’s a natural strategy for a campaign,” Capito said. “I think, obviously, the war and the president –– immediately, when he came out with it, said it would be short term, the American people expected that. I think that’s been a bit of a disappointment to the American people, that we aren’t at the end, especially when they see gas prices going up.”

“So, would I tell the president, ‘End the war now?’ Yes, I would,” she continued. “And that’s what our candidates are doing. I think that would be a logical conclusion.”

McShane pressed Capito on whether she thinks Trump should bring the conflict to an end.

“I think he should bring it to a close, yes,” she replied. “And now that the straits are open, I think that’s moved in the right direction. You can see the economic pressure that we’ve been putting on them and on their economics is starting to have the desired effect.”

Capito said the “news I’m reading” was that the Strait of Hormuz was “more open than [it] had been, and that’s at the behest of Iran.”

Capito told reporters earlier this month that she would not vote to declare war on Iran or limit Trump’s military authority, West Virginia-based outlet MetroNews reported .

“And it’s becoming very costly, and not just in time, but in treasure, and you know personally, I think West Virginians not only when they look at their diesel prices and gas prices are ready for it to come down, are ready for it to end,” she told reporters, according to the outlet.

Capito previously told NewsNation’s Blake Burman in July that Americans felt the “ weariness creep in ” over the conflict, adding that her constituents were concerned about the conflict’s extended effect as it stretches on.

Iran’s government has effectively closed the strait since the conflict began on Feb. 28. Roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil is exported through the route. The cutoff has caused gas prices to skyrocket, with the national average for gas in the U.S. reaching $4.48 on Monday, according to AAA.

Iranian negotiators issued a seven-day peace offer to the U.S. last week that would reopen the strait and initiate a ceasefire. Trump rejected the proposal on Saturday, and said the next day that he expects U.S. officials to negotiate further with their Iranian counterparts this week.