Marco Rubio Reportedly Part Of Trump's Inner Circle As He Weighs Whether To Strike Iran

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is reportedly part of President Donald Trump's inner circle as he ponders whether to strike Iran.

NBC News reported that others who are part of the inner circle are Vice President JD Vance, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.

Trump also relies on Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff on matters he covers and has been "crowdsourcing" with allies outside the White House and his administration about what decision he should make, the outlet added.

Others involved in high-level discussions are Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Erik Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command; and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

At the same time, Trump has reportedly sidelined two high-ranking officials who would generally be involved in such matters: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell rejected the claim, saying it's "completely false." "The Secretary is speaking with the President multiple times a day each day and has been with the President in the Situation Room this week," he said in a statement.

However, a recent report by the Washington Post details that Hegseth has been excluded from high-level deliberations. "Nobody is talking to Hegseth," an official told the outlet. Despite the Pentagon's claim that Hegseth remains closely involved, three current U.S. officials confirmed that key briefings and war planning are being led by Generals Kurilla and Caine, with no operational coordination involving Hegseth or his staff.

Gabbard has also been reportedly sidelined. Quoting several senior administration officials, NBC News recalled that she was not invited to attend a meeting of top officials earlier this month at Camp David to discuss the matter.

In fact, Trump reportedly revealed to close aides that he has been considering dissolving the office ran by Gabbard, alleging that she does not add to his administration.

The idea stemmed from a brief video posted on social media by Gabbard earlier this month, in which the former Hawaii representative rattled off about how "political elite and warmongers" are "carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers," adding that the world is "on the brink of nuclear annihilation."

The video, which had not been approved by the White House, reportedly infuriated President Trump, who believed Gabbard was expressing disapproval of Israel's incoming attacks on Iran.

The president's frustration with Gabbard reportedly worsened when, while aboard Air Force One, a reporter asked him about her statement that Iran was not attempting to build a nuclear weapon, which she delivered to Congress in March. "I don't care what she said," Trump replied. "I think they were very close to having a weapon."

Originally published on Latin Times