Absent Boots on the Ground, the US Cannot Achieve Decisive Results in Iran: Panel

The panel also discussed Trump’s commitment of $10 billion to the Board of Peace.
Published: 2/19/2026, 11:59:18 PM EST

Former U.S. Ambassador James Jeffrey and retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Robert Maginnis joined an NTD panel discussion to explore President Donald Trump’s strong words for Iran on Thursday, when he threatened that “bad things will happen” if Iran does not make a nuclear deal. The panel also discussed the U.S. military build-up and Trump’s potential strategy should talks fail.

The panel explored the risk of any U.S. military action, the scale of a potential military operation, and the tremendous damage the U.S. military could do to Iran’s infrastructure. They also spoke about Trump’s commitment of $10 billion to the Board of Peace.