Trump Says Any War Under His Leadership Would Be 'Quick and Violent' as US Naval Presence Expands in Caribbean

US President Donald Trump said during an interview with Laura Ingraham on Fox News that while he does not seek armed conflict, any war during his term would result in a rapid and forceful victory.

His comments arrive as the United States has significantly bolstered its military footprint in the Caribbean with the arrival of the the USS Gerald Ford, the largest aircraft carrier in the world, to the Southern Command's area of responsibility.

"If I'm in a war, we will win it quickly and it will be violent," Trump said, repeating the line in response to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's warning about "endless wars" under a second Trump administration. Trump countered that he had "stopped eight wars in the last nine months," adding, "I don't want a war, but if I'm in one, we will win it quickly."

Besides the aforementioned aircraft carrier, the US deployed the USS Gettysburg — a Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser equipped with upgraded Aegis radar and vertical-launch missile systems — last week to reinforce the mission, which the Navy said aims to "ensure stability, deter threats, and strengthen interoperability." The US has also continued bomber flights near Venezuela, including B-52H and B-1B aircraft operating off its coast.

The interview with Ingraham also ranged into domestic policy, as The Guardian points out. Trump defended his economic record, said "polls are fake," and promoted a health insurance concept he called "Trump Care," asserting it would allow people to "feel like entrepreneurs."

He also criticized the Federal Reserve and reiterated a claim that air-traffic controllers who continued working during the recent shutdown would receive a $10,000 bonus; when asked how it would be funded, he replied, "I will get it from some place." Asked about criticism from Democrats, Trump said, "MAGA was my idea. I know what MAGA wants better than anybody else."