Remarks at a Greeting With the Juventus Football Club and an Exchange With Reporters

The President. Well, thank you very much. We have a great team behind us, Juventus of Italy, and a friend of mine is the owner of the team. He's a fantastic businessperson, a young guy. And I think it's got the longest string of ownership of just about any sports franchise, but does have the record in soccer. That's John Elkann.

I think you know John Elkann is a man that has done a fantastic job in the automobile industry. Comes from a lineage of winners. And you have Gianni Infantino, as you know, and he's going to have the World Cup here.

We have a game tonight. The game is—where is it—over in DC, at the stadium?

Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) President Giovanni V. Infantino. Here, yeah. Audi Field, DC.

The President. And it's totally sold out, I hope, right?

Mr. Infantino. Sold out. Of course, yes. [Laughter]

The President. Okay, good. Well—and you have two great American players on this team. And would you just—where are you, my American players?

Midfielder Weston McKennie. We're over here.

The President. You're fantastic. So good luck.

Mr. McKennie. Thank you.

Wingback Timothy Weah. Thank you, sir.

The President. I hope you're going to be the two best players on the field, okay? [Laughter]

Well, I just thought you might want to ask questions—anything about the World Cup or the game tonight, but anything about the World Cup would be great. And Gianni is right here. So anybody have any questions?

The President's Favored Team

Q. Which team are you supporting?

The President. And I hope you like the—well, I'm—I'm a little—you know, he's a friend of mine. It's hard to go against him, to be honest with you. But they have a good team.

Who are you playing tonight?

Owner John Elkann. We're playing against the Emirati team, Al Ain.

The President. Oh, that's good.

Mr. Elkann. Yes, strong.

The President. That's good. Well, they spend a lot of money, right? [Laughter] They pay a lot of money. Yes, that's probably—is it a strong team? Good team tonight?

Midfielder Manuel Locatelli. Yes.

The President. Yes, you're good.

Mr. Elkann. All teams are good. It's the best teams in the world who are here in America.

The President. Right, Gianni, you think? They're all——

Mr. Infantino. Best teams in the world are here.

The President. They're all good?

Mr. Infantino. That's what——

The President. Well, we raised the American flag for you guys today.

Mr. Infantino. Well, that's quite historic day.

The President. [Inaudible] Looks nice out there, doesn't it? Beautiful? Even you agree, right? I think so. Do you agree? No. No. Most of you agree.

So do you have any questions, please?

Israel

Q. Do you know the latest on the evacuations out of Israel, Mr. President?

The President. No.

Q. Have you been updated on that?

The President. No, we're having a meeting in an hour. I have a meeting downstairs in one hour.

Yes.

Iran

Q. Mr. President, on Iran: If they—if regime change does happen now, if the regime falls, do you have a plan for what you think would happen there or could happen?

The President. I have a plan for everything, but we'll see what happens. We've got a ways to go. They should have—look, they should have made the deal. I had a great deal for them. They should have made that deal. Sixty days, we talked about it. And in the end, they decided not to do it.

And now they wish they did it, and they want to meet, but it's—you know, it's a little late to meet, but they want to meet, and they want to come to the White House. They'll even come to the White House. So we'll see. I may—I may do that.

But it's a shame it wasn't—could have been done the easy way.

Iran

Q. Do you think regime there could fall?

The President. Sure. Anything could happen, right? Of that, sure, it could happen.

Yes, please.

Former President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

Q. Mr. President, the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on who exactly was running the White House under Joe Biden. Who do you think that was?

The President. I think the autopen ran the White House. You know, we have an autopen President before me. It's a—it's—I think it's one of the greatest scandals in the history of this country—one of the biggest scandals.

He wasn't making a decision. He was never for open borders, where people came in from all over the world—from prisons and gangs and drug dealers and all of that, mentally—the mentally insane. He was never for that. He was never for open borders, and he was never for—if you think, he was never for transgender for everybody or men playing in women's sports. You know, he was never for that.

Have you ever had women—could a woman make your team, fellas? Tell me. You think? Huh?

Mr. Weah. Yes.

Mr. Locatelli. Yes.

The President. You're being nice.

Mr. Weah. [Inaudible]

The President. What do you think? You think a women could make the team?

General managers, what do you think?

General Manager Damien Comolli. Difficult.

The President. Don't say it. Close.

Mr. Comolli. We have a very good women's team though.

Mr. Elkann. They won the championship.

The President. But they should be playing with women, right? You know, it's one of those things. I mean, one of those things.

See, they're very diplomatic. [Laughter]

Iran/The President's Foreign Policy

Q. As you're making your decision on Iran, obviously, there's been a change from when you were pursuing a diplomatic negotiation. Now you seem very open to the idea of potentially taking U.S. action. Obviously, you're not going to tell us that. Can you walk us through what contributed to that change, how you got to where you are in making your decision now?

The President. Well, I think it started the first night. I mean, you know, that first night was devastating, and it really knocked the one side off, as you know. Devastating—devastating evening, day. And it's pretty much proceeded that way.

I have a meeting in the war room in a little while—the Situation Room, as some people call it. So we're going to meet, we're going to see. It's—we're in the midst of—it's a terrible thing. I hate to see it. I hate to see all that death—so much death and destruction, but death primarily is what I hate to see.

Q. Does that mean you haven't made a decision yet on what to do——

The President. I have—I——

Q. ——or have you made a decision?

The President. ——have ideas as to what to do, but I haven't made a final. I like to make the final decision one second before it's due, you know, because things change. I mean, especially with war, things change. With war, it can go from one extreme to the other.

War is very bad. There was no reason for this to be a war. There was no reason for Russia-Ukraine. A lot of wars there was no reason for. You know?

You look right up there, I don't know, see the Declaration of Independence, and I say, I wonder if you—you know, the Civil War—it always seemed to me maybe that could have been solved without losing 600,000-plus people.

So a lot of—it's very sad to see. It's very sad to see what's happening.

But with that being said, I would say, right now Israel, from the standpoint of winning a war, is doing pretty well.

Yes, please.

Iran/Israel/India/Pakistan

Q. Mr. President, in your meeting today with the Chief of Staff for the Pakistani Army, did you talk about Iran? Did that come up?

The President. Yes.

Q. Is there anything you can share from that meeting, sir?

The President. No, well, they know Iran very well—better than most—and they're not happy about anything. It's not that they're bad with Israel. They know them both, actually, but they probably—maybe they know Iran better.

But they see what's going on, and they—he agreed with me. Reason I had him here, I wanted to thank him for not going into the war. Just, you know, ending the war.

And I want to thank—as you know, Prime Minister Modi just left—just a little while ago, just left, and we're working a trade deal with India. We're working a trade deal with Pakistan. And they were both here, but I was with Modi a few weeks ago. He was here, actually. But now we speak to him, and I'm so happy.

There was a deal that two smart people, plus—you know, they have people on their staff too—but two smart people—two very smart people decided not to keep going with that war. That could have been a nuclear war. Those are two nuclear powers—big ones. Big, big nuclear powers. And they decided that. So I was honored to meet him today.

U.S. Travel Restrictions on Certain Countries/Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Club World Cup

Q. And if I can, on FIFA, sir, and for anyone who may want to answer. How has the travel bans from certain countries affected fans maybe coming in for the games, or is that not a consideration at all?

The President. Gianni, go ahead.

Mr. Infantino. Yes. No, it's not a concern for us for the games. Now, in the Club World Cup, everything has been done in a very smooth way. We have an excellent, excellent collaboration, of course, with the President, but with the Task Force in particular.

For next year, the World Cup, we have 1 more year to work, and the learnings that we have this year with the Club World Cup, which is historic—I say this to all the Americans, because it's the first-ever Club World Cup, and it's played in the United States of America.

So the learnings we'll have for this, we'll——

The President. Exciting, huh?

Mr. Infantino. ——apply them next year.

The President. And they're largely sold out. So I don't know.

Mr. Infantino. But everything is great.

The President. I don't think he's too worried about the travel ban. He doesn't know what the travel ban is, I don't think.

Gianni, tell me what the travel ban is. He doesn't know what it is. He's largely sold out. Like tonight is totally—I've had friends. They heard about this meeting. They said, "Can you get me tickets?" I don't know if I can get tickets. He won't give them to me.

Mr. Infantino. Well, we can speak on it.

The President. Maybe John will give them to me. [Laughter]

Yes, please.

Iran/Nuclear Weapons Development

Q. Mr. President, two questions, if I could. One about Iran and then one domestically. With Iran, what's your message to Americans, both here and abroad, who are not only concerned about the U.S. potentially getting involved in another conflict in the Middle East but worry about the potential for retaliation here at home?

The President. Yes. Well, I don't want to get involved either, but I've been saying for 20 years, maybe longer, that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. I've been saying it for a long time, and I think they were a few weeks away from having one, and they had to sign a document. I think they wish they signed it now.

It was a fair deal. And now it's a harder thing to sign, you know. It's a lot of water over the dam. But, you know, it's very—I say it very simply: Iran can't have a nuclear weapon. Too much devastation. And they'd use it. You know, I believe they'd use it. Others won't use it. But I believe they'd use it. So that's it. It's very simple, as far as I'm concerned. They can't have a nuclear weapon.

Federal Minimum Wage

Q. And then, domestically, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley came out this week as the lead sponsor of a bill to raise the Federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. It's stands out because he's a Republican. There's still 20 States that have it at $7.25. Do you support the legislation or the idea of raising it?

The President. Well, I haven't seen it. I'd have to speak to Josh. He's a very good friend of mine. That's interesting that Josh did that. [Laughter] That's—I mean, I have to think about that one. Some people agree with it. Some people don't. You know, some people say it really turns away business, restaurant slows, and a lot of things happen. Other people agree.

I'd have to speak to Josh. He's a good guy.

[At this point, several reporters began asking questions at once.]

Iran/U.S. Military Capabilities/Israel

Q. Mr. President, on the—for the Iran—the possibility of an Iran deal. Is the destruction or the dismantling of the—the Fordow nuclear enrichment center—is that a prerequisite for a deal? Is that a red line for you?

The President. No, it's just something that people talk about having. We're the only ones that have the capability to do it, but that doesn't mean I'm going to do it at all.

Yes, we have the best military equipment in the world. You see that with this fight. We have planes that are undetectable, flying around like, you know, nobody's able to see them. Stealth. You guys want to be stealthy tonight. You know? You can be stealthy. You'll never lose. Right?

But these are incredible planes and weapons. We have the best weapons in the world, by far. Nobody close. And we're—I mean, certain countries take advantage of that. Israel has incredible weaponry. So we'll see what happens.

I have not—I've been asked about it by everybody, but I haven't made a decision.

Israel/Iran

Q. Mr. President, you talked earlier today about having daily conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu.

The President. Yes.

Q. How have those conversations weighed on you in terms of getting more involved? He's been lobbying for the U.S. to get more involved. Has that had an impact in kind of your evolution, sir?

The President. Look, we talk, and I'd like to see everything done. I would have preferred having just an agreement—a strong agreement—you know, verifiable agreement. But it was such a shame. They were so close.

You know, Iran was very close to signing what would have been a very good agreement for them, and maybe that could still happen, I guess, you know. They do want to come and see us. And they want to see me in the White House. That's a big statement. But it's very late.

Q. Is it enough of a statement to hold off getting involved——

The President. We're going to see what happens. We're going to see what happens. Ending it as soon as you can would be good.

Iran/U.S. Diplomatic Engagement

Q. Have you closed the door on meeting with them——

The President. No.

Q. Okay. So it's still open to them coming here, in your—in your eyes?

The President. Yes. I mean, they asked if they could come. We'll see if that happens. It's not that easy for them to come. They can't get out. You know, they're in Iran. And in one case, the guy wanted to come so badly, but he can't get out because there's bombs dropping all over the place.

Iran/Nuclear Weapons Development

Q. Have you seen the Tucker Carlson/Senator Ted Cruz interview? It seems like this issue on whether or not the United States should strike is kind of dividing a lot of your supporters.

The President. No, my supporters are for me. My supporters are "America first." They're "Make America Great Again." My supporters don't want to see Iran have a nuclear weapon.

Tucker is a nice guy. He called and apologized the other day because he thought he said things that were a little bit too strong, and I appreciated that. And Ted Cruz is a nice guy. I mean, he's been with me for a long time. I'd say once the race was over, he's been with me ever since, right?

But very simple: If they think that it's okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon, then they should oppose me. But nobody thinks it's okay. People that don't want—I don't want to fight either. I'm not looking to fight. But if it's a choice between fighting and them having a nuclear weapon, you have to do what you have to do. Maybe we won't have to fight.

Don't forget, we haven't been fighting. We add a certain amount of genius to everything, but we haven't been fighting at all. Israel has done a very good job of that. But we'll see what happens.

The bottom line is, they can't have nuclear. And if Ted—I can't imagine that Ted Cruz said it's okay for Iran to have nuclear, including Tucker. I don't think Tucker says it's okay. The problem is, then they get themselves into a thing. They don't want them to have nuclear, but then they say, "Well, we don't want to fight."

Well, you're going to have to make a choice, because it's possible that you're going to have to fight for them not to have nuclear. And it's interesting because I did ask Tucker—I said, "Well, are you okay with nuclear weapons being in the hands of Iran?" And he sort of didn't like that. He didn't want to really—but he sort of didn't like that. And I said, "Well, if it's okay with you, then you and I do have a difference." But it's really not okay with him, therefore you may have to fight.

And maybe it will end, and maybe it will end very quickly, but there's no way that you can allow—whether you have to fight or not—you can allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, because the entire world will blow up. Not going to let that happen.

Q. Mr. President, on the southern border.

President Emmanuel Macron of France/Iran/Israel

Q. Mr. President, and on—you had a bit of a row with President Emmanuel Macron of France the other day at the G–7, it sounded like.

The President. No, he's a nice guy. Look, he said I was going back home to make a cease-fire. Not a cease-fire. We're long beyond cease-fire. And I said: "Why do you say that? Why would you say 'cease-fire'?" It's a bad term to use because a cease-fire means, like, everything's going swimmingly, we'll take a little time off. It's not.

We're not looking for a cease-fire. We're looking for a total, complete victory. Again, you know what the victory is: no nuclear weapon.

Q. Mr. President, on the——

The President. So it was a—I thought it was a very badly worded statement by him. And obviously, I let him know that.

Border Security

Q. On the Southern border. You've had record-low numbers for the month of May: ninety-five apprehensions, zero releases compared to that of the previous administration exactly a year ago.

The President. Yes.

Q. More than 60,000 releases. What do you attribute that success to?

The President. I like you. Who are you with?

Q. Turning Point U.S.A., sir.

The President. Well, they're are very good, Turning Point. Charlie, he's very good. That's—see, that's what I call a good question, fellas. One out of ten, John. One out of ten. But that's a really good question.

No, we had record-good numbers on the border, and people are coming in, but they have to come in legally. Like some of these guys behind me, they have to come in legally. And if they come in legally, we want them. They have to say they love America, they love our country, and if they can't say that, we don't want them.

Thank you very much. Very nice.

Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you very much. Thanks. Thank you.