Trump faces backlash for suggesting Iran could 'take out' Los Angeles and San Diego

The story so far

17 publishers have covered this in 38 articles since 6 Oct 2026. The Hill published first, on 6 October at 12:36 UTC; The New York Times followed 1h 27m later. The most recent article, from The Hill, appeared on 8 October at 21:23 UTC.

Outlets reporting it: The Hill (major outlet), The New York Times (major outlet), Axios (major outlet), Washington Post (major outlet), The Guardian (major outlet), CBS News (major outlet), Variety Australia (major outlet), Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera (major outlet), The Hollywood Reporter (major outlet), Times of India, South China Morning Post, BBC News and 5 more, all listed under Sources below.

3 prediction markets price this story:

• Iran (5+ times) — resolved “No” on 8 Oct 2026. The market resolves to Yes if Donald Trump mentions Iran five or more times during his midterm rally in San Antonio, Texas, which is scheduled for October 7, 2026. Otherwise, it resolves to No. Readers often mistake the linked news story about Los Angeles and San Diego as the relevant event, but only the specific Texas rally counts.
• Will Donald Trump attend a US x Iran diplomatic meeting by December 31, 2026? — the market puts it at 5%, with $652 traded in the last 24 hours, closing 31 Dec 2026. For the market to resolve to Yes, Donald Trump must be physically present at a formal, senior-level diplomatic meeting between US and Iran representatives before December 31, 2026. The event must involve authorized officials acting in an official capacity and cannot be limited to technical staff or follow-on talks from previous rounds.
• Make Iran Great Again — resolved “No” on 12 Oct 2026. The outcome is Yes if Donald Trump states "Make Iran Great Again" or a grammatical variation of that phrase before October 12, 2026 at 12:00am ET. Otherwise, the outcome is No. Readers often mistake the source of truth, assuming any mention by others counts, but only statements by Trump resolve the market.

Odds are the market's probability that the outcome happens, updated every few minutes. They are information about what traders expect, not a forecast we make and not investment advice.