A major rift opened up between two prominent conservative allies on Wednesday after Donald Trump Jr. publicly accused Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) of lying about a newly signed United States-Iran memorandum of understanding (MOU).
The friction started on X shortly after President Donald Trump announced that the peace agreement, aimed at ending military conflict in the region, had been signed late Wednesday night in Versailles.
In an interview earlier that day, Cruz blasted the administration’s strategy, arguing that the president is getting “very poor advice when it comes to this deal.” The Texas senator took direct aim at the financial implications of the agreement.
“History teaches that giving billions of dollars to theocratic lunatics who want to murder us is a bad idea,” Cruz said. “Under the terms of what’s been released, somewhere between $10 billion and $30 billion will flow to the Ayatollah immediately before they make even a single nuclear concession.”
Cruz further warned that the funds would be used to finance terrorism and weapons targeting Americans, adding that the deal “appears to formalize a permanent role for the Islamic regime controlling the Strait of Hormuz.” Pointing to recent U.S. strikes against Iranian targets, Cruz said, “It is not remotely in America’s interest for us to pay to rebuild that capacity that we just took out.”
Donald Trump Jr. fired back quickly on social media, dismissing Cruz’s characterization of the deal as intentionally misleading and harmful to the political movement.
“The only problem with this quote is that @tedcruz is lying thru his teeth about the deal,” Trump Jr. wrote on X. “We’re not giving them a cent, and he knows that. Using fake news about the peace deal to undermine @realDonaldTrump is the opposite of MAGA.”
The text of the actual memorandum of understanding presents a mix of terms regarding the money and security measures at the heart of the debate.
On the question of direct funding, the MOU does not state that the U.S. is directly giving American taxpayer money to Iran. However, Paragraph 11 dictates that the U.S. will “make fully available for use the frozen or restricted funds and assets of the Islamic Republic of Iran upon the implementation of this MOU,” with the exact release procedures to be negotiated later.
Additionally, Paragraph 6 commits the U.S. to working alongside regional partners to create a “definitive, mutually agreed plan with at least USD 300 billion for the reconstruction and economic development” of Iran. The agreement also requires the U.S. to lift all unilateral and international sanctions, and issue Treasury waivers allowing Iran to export crude oil and access international banking systems.
In exchange, Paragraph 1 mandates an immediate and permanent termination of all military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon. Under Paragraph 8, Iran explicitly “reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons” and agrees to blend down its enriched material stockpile on-site under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Regarding the Strait of Hormuz, Paragraph 5 notes that Iran will allow free, uncharged passage for commercial vessels for a 60-day window, while launching talks with the Sultanate of Oman and other Gulf states to outline the future administration of the vital shipping lane.
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