Trump: Iranians Face ‘Big Hurdle’ in Overthrowing Regime

The president said groups with machine guns are shooting protesters in the streets. ‘This is an evil group of people.’

Iranian people waving national flags attend the Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day rally in support of Palestinians on the last Friday of Ramadan in Tehran on March 13, 2026. Arezoo/Middle East Images via AFP via Getty Images

President Donald Trump said Iranians who wish to overthrow their government face a considerable challenge from the regime, which quashes protesters with violence, calling it a “big hurdle” as the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran’s military infrastructure escalate.

In a telephone interview on the “Brian Kilmeade Show” on Friday, Trump commented on the possibility of regime change in Tehran in the wake of the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and ongoing aerial strikes that have targeted Iran’s leadership.

Trump highlighted groups with machine guns who shoot protesters in the streets.

“So I really think that’s a big hurdle to climb for people that don’t have weapons,” Trump said.  “I think it’s a very big hurdle.”

He further described the regime’s ruthlessness.

“These are bad people,” he said. “They go out shooting protesters. You’re a protester. They shoot you right through the head. This is an evil group of people.”

The president added that if Iran’s leaders had a nuclear weapon, they would use it without losing any sleep.

The U.S.-Israeli operation, which was launched Feb. 28, aims to dismantle Iran’s nuclear and missile programs.

The U.S. president has called on Iranians to overthrow the regime, calling it, in prior comments, potentially the “only chance for generations“ to oust the nation’s clerical rulers.

Trump estimates the operation could last four to five weeks.

“We’ve been decimating them,” he said previously. “We’ve knocked out most of their missiles. We’ve knocked out many of their drones. We knocked out a lot of the manufacturing areas where they manufacture the missiles and now the drones. We’re hitting them harder than anybody’s been hit since World War II.”

He told Kilmeade that Iran’s navy and air force have been neutralized.

“Their navy has been totally gone,” Trump said. “As far as we know, it’s just gone. Their air force is gone. Their leadership is gone. Their second leadership is gone. Now their third leadership is in trouble.”

The president noted a significant decrease in Iran’s ballistic missile strikes and a drop in drone attacks. He credited this to targeted operations on launchers and storage sites.

He said the U.S. Armed Forces have knocked out most of Iran’s missiles.

“It’s going very well,” he reiterated. “We’re way ahead of schedule, way ahead.”

Trump said an escalation is still on the table, but that the administration is trying to avoid targeting critical infrastructure and power plants.

“We could do things that would be so bad they could literally never rebuild as a nation again,” Trump said. And we’re trying to be nice about it. We’re not doing it now.”

Trump said the operations are working, despite the Iranian regime’s claims to the contrary.

“They’re putting up a wonderful front,” he said. “They’re saying things, but they are devastated.”