During a conversation with a Fox News host, Donald Trump remarked that she seemed to grow “more attractive” with age when she inquired about the potential starvation of Iranians due to ongoing conflicts.

Trump humorously suggested to Dana Perino that such remarks could jeopardize his political career, noting the current climate where complimenting a woman’s beauty is often frowned upon.

Perino, with a smile, attributed her appearance to the network’s skilled hair and makeup team in what was a wide-ranging and occasionally peculiar interview with the former President.

Trump had phoned into Fox News’ The Five Show, where Perino questioned him about the living conditions in Iran, specifically whether its citizens were facing starvation.

Criticizing the Iranian regime’s treatment of its people, Perino, who previously served as White House press secretary under George W. Bush, inquired if Trump had any insights into their access to necessities like clean water and food, expressing her concern over the situation.

The President responded affirmatively, acknowledging the issue before diverting the conversation with his compliment.

He said: ‘But first. Remember when we had lunch years ago in the base of Trump Tower when it was a brand new building?

‘You haven’t changed. I’m not allowed to say this. It’s the end of my political career, but you may be even better looking, okay? So, I don’t know what you’re doing’.

Dana Perino smiles on Fox News as Donald Trump said she was getting more beautiful with age when she was asking him about the humanitarian disaster in Iran

Mr Trump joked that his comments about Dana might ‘end my political career’

A smiling Ms Perino, 53, replied: “Fox hair and makeup has a lot to do with it.”

Mr Trump went on: ‘I will not say that because that will end my political career. You are not allowed to say a woman is beautiful anymore’.

He then said to Dana Perino’s co-host Jesse Watters: ‘You know that, Jesse. You have to be careful’.

In the same interview he admitted that the CIA had told him the new Ayatollah of Iran may be gay.

Mr Trump said: ‘They did say that. I think a lot of people are saying that – which puts him off to a bad start in that particular country’.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency has said that it believes 1,492 Iranians have been killed since the war began.

Mr Trump has a history of flirty comments – and barbs – when dealing with female reporters. 

He called the New York Times’ Katie Rogers ‘ugly’ and tried to shush Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey when she asked about the Epstein Files by telling her: ‘Quiet, piggy’.

It came as Donald Trump last night said he will hold off on bombing Iran’s energy infrastructure until at least early April after extending the deadline for Tehran to negotiate a deal by ten days.

The President said he acted at the behest of Iranian leadership, posting the announcement on social media Thursday afternoon. 

‘As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,’ Trump said.

‘Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well.’ 

Trump first announced a five-day pause on US strikes targeting Iran’s energy sector early Monday, and has since submitted a 15-point peace plan to the regime.

Tehran rejected the terms and vowed to continue fighting, sending oil prices rocketing after they had plunged at the start of the week. 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state media that exchanges between the two countries through mediators do not mean ‘negotiations with the US.’ 

International benchmark Brent crude rose 5.7 percent Thursday to $108 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate futures climbed 4.6 percent to $95 per barrel.

Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on March 26 

US forces have struck Iran’s Kharg Island, where some 90 percent of the country’s oil is prepared before being exported

A thick plume of smoke rises from an oil storage facility hit by a U.S.-Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran, March 8, 2026

Extending the temporary ceasefire on Iran’s energy production allows the US and Iran to continue negotiations to end the war, now in its fourth week.

Special Envoy Steve Witkoff confirmed Thursday that talks conducted alongside Jared Kushner and their Iranian counterparts had been fruitful. 

‘I can report to you today that we have, along with your foreign-policy team, presented a 15-point action list that forms the framework for a peace deal,’ he said at Thursday’s Cabinet meeting.

‘This has been circulated through the Pakistani government, acting as the mediator,’ he continued. ‘This has resulted in strong and positive messaging and talks.’ 

The Iranian regime has ratcheted up pressure on Washington even as talks progress, publicly confirming its continued pursuit of a nuclear weapon.  

The relentless US-Israeli strikes have persuaded the regime it has nothing to gain by holding back from building a bomb, sources told Reuters. 

State television aired a segment earlier this month in which conservative commentator Nasser Torabi said the Iranian public demanded action: ‘We need to act in order to build a nuclear weapon. Either we build it or we acquire it.’ 

Iran’s state media claimed Thursday that more than a million troops have been mobilized in preparation for a potential US ground invasion to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The threats from Tehran come as the US military is reportedly planning a ‘final blow’ to take out the remnants of the Islamic regime, a threat that could include US ground troops in Iran in combination with a devastating bombardment. 

‘Trump has a hand open for a deal, and the other is a fist, waiting to punch you in the f***ing face,’ a Trump aide told Axios.

The President has told members of his inner circle he is prepared to pull the trigger on a full-scale invasion if Tehran continues to rebuff his diplomatic overtures. 

Pentagon chiefs ordered around 2,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East this week to join some 4,500 Marines already en route to the region.