Donald Trump’s bizarre plan to play ‘kingmaker’ in Iran just got a cold, hard slap from his own intelligence officials

A classified report from the National Intelligence Council (NIC) just delivered a harsh reality check to President Trump’s ambitious plans for reshaping Iran. The assessment suggests that even a massive U.S. military assault would likely fail to dislodge the Islamic Republic’s deeply entrenched military and clerical establishment. 

These findings, confirmed by three individuals familiar with the report’s contents, cast doubt on Trump’s stated goal to “clean out” Iran’s leadership and install a new ruler of his choosing. The Washington Post reports that the NIC is comprised of veteran analysts from Washington’s 18 intelligence agencies. They produce classified assessments that represent the collective wisdom of the U.S. intelligence community.

The report was completed about a week before the U.S. and Israel launched the war. It outlined various scenarios, including narrowly targeted campaigns against Iran’s leaders and broader assaults on government institutions. In every scenario, the report concluded that Iran’s leadership would activate protocols designed to maintain continuity of power. The prospect of Iran’s fragmented opposition taking control was deemed “unlikely.”

Well… is anyone surprised, because I am not

The White House declined to comment on whether Trump was briefed on this assessment. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly explained that the administration has “clearly outlined their goals with regard to Operation Epic Fury: destroy Iran’s ballistic missiles and production capacity, demolish their navy, end their ability to arm proxies, and prevent them from ever obtaining a nuclear weapon.” The conflict has expanded, but Kelly insists, “The Iranian regime is being absolutely crushed.” 

Suzanne Maloney, an Iran scholar, noted that the NIC’s prediction comes from ” a deeply informed assessment of the Iranian system and the institutions and processes that have been established for many years,” she said. It’s worth noting that the intelligence report didn’t appear to explore other potential scenarios, like deploying U.S. ground troops.

The succession process outlined in the report is now unfolding under immense pressure from the extensive U.S.-Israel bombing campaign. Iran’s powerful clerical body, the Assembly of Experts, is responsible for replacing the supreme leader, though the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other security forces also play a significant role. 

As the war enters its second week, Trump continues to demand Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER.” He even suggested that he should have a say in picking the country’s next leader, saying, “We want them to have a good leader. We have some people who I think would do a good job.”

Iran’s Parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, rejected Trump’s idea of appointing Iran’s next leader on X. “The fate of dear Iran, which is more precious than life, will be determined solely by the proud Iranian nation, not by Jeffrey Epstein’s gang.”

So far, U.S. officials see little evidence of uprisings or divisions that would lead to a new regime. With Iran’s clerical and military establishment still firmly in control, experts believe Trump’s ability to dictate political outcomes is severely limited as “Bending the knee to Trump would go against everything they stand for.”