President Donald Trump told Laura Ingraham on a Fox News program that aired Thursday he might forgo a complete campaign to topple Iran’s government owing to the coming election.

Ingraham had observed that even some hawkish conservatives argue for total commitment if any military step is taken. Trump said he prefers to hold the current course while the United States seizes large volumes of oil.

He reported that American forces cleared twenty-two vessels from a key waterway overnight and now dominate that passage while Iran dominates none of it. He added that Iran faces three-hundred-percent inflation, is not compensating its soldiers or police, and that those forces may later refuse to fire on demonstrators.