Horror novelist Stephen King took to social media Wednesday to rebuke President Trump and his supporters after the president said Americans’ financial situations play no role in his Iran nuclear negotiations.
Mr. King, the author of “Pet Sematary” and “The Shining,” posted on X, “Trump says he doesn’t care ’even a little bit’ if Americans suffer rising costs. Of course he doesn’t; he can swan around in Air Force One and eat steak and eggs at every meal, if he wants. Will you MAGA Trumpaholics never learn?”
The post came after Mr. Trump spoke with reporters on the White House South Lawn before departing for a state visit to China. When a reporter asked whether Americans’ financial situations factored into his Iran diplomacy, Mr. Trump replied, “Not even a little bit. The only thing that matters when I’m talking about Iran — they can’t have a nuclear weapon. I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing — we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon. That’s all.”
When asked to clarify, Mr. Trump said the most important consideration was preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon — more important, he said, than whether the stock market “goes up or down a little bit,” adding that he believed the market was “at an all-time high.” He added that once the standoff concludes, oil prices would fall sharply and a “golden age” for Americans would follow.
The remarks drew sharp Democratic criticism. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro wrote on X, “Gas is over $4.60/gallon in Pennsylvania today. Donald Trump’s chaos continues to jack up costs and make life harder for everyone — and he literally doesn’t give a damn.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on X, “The reckless Republican war of choice in Iran is crushing the financial situation of the American people.”
Vice President J.D. Vance disputed the characterization that Mr. Trump had expressed indifference to Americans’ economic hardship, saying, “I don’t think the president said that. I think that’s a misrepresentation of what the president said.” Mr. Vance said he agreed with the president that Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung told Newsweek, “The President’s ultimate responsibility is the safety and security of Americans. Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and if action wasn’t taken, they’d have one, which threatens all Americans.”
A May 9–11 Economist/YouGov poll of 1,549 U.S. adults found 30% of Americans support the war with Iran and 55% oppose it.
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