What does 'Trump TACO' mean? Iran ultimatum postponed before deadline

• President Trump postponed a threatened strike on Iran's power plants after issuing a 48-hour ultimatum to open the Strait of Hormuz.
• Some critics are applying the term "TACO Trump," which stands for "Trump always chickens out," to the situation.

President Donald Trump on March 23 postponed a threat on Iran's power plants he issued over the weekend.

Trump pressured Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that passes a fifth of the world's oil. The Truth Social post on March 21 gave the country 48 hours to do so before the U.S. would "obliterate" its power plants. Iran threatened to retaliate with strikes on critical energy and water systems.

But on the day of the deadline, Trump said he was postponing the strikes for five days following "good and productive conversations" with Iran to resolve the hostilities in the Middle East. Iranian state media has characterized the postponement as a retreat, and Iran’s parliament speaker denied any negotiations.

The back and forth has some Trump critics calling him TACO Trump (again). What does it mean?

What does TACO mean?

Financial Times columnist Robert Armstrong coined "TACO trade" in May 2025, describing how some investors anticipate market rebounds amid Trump's on-again, off-again tariff policies.

The acronym stands for "Trump always chickens out."

Armstrong describes TACO trade as some investors' strategy to buy into the market that dips when Trump announces steep tariffs on the assumption that he will back off his tariff order, and the market will rebound.

Trump previously hit back at a reporter who asked about the term, saying, "you ask a nasty question like that. It's called negotiation."

The Supreme Court ruled on Feb. 20 that many of Trump's tariffs were illegal.

Trump postpones strikes on Iran power for 5 days

Trump over the weekend threatened to strike Iran's power plants if it didn't open the Strait of Hormuz.

The Strait of Hormuz is a waterway that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. It is a chokepoint for about 20% of the world's oil shipments. It has been largely closed since the U.S. started the war in Iran, impacting the global oil market and raising prices. A barrel of crude oil hovered around $100 over the weekend, up more than $30 in the last 30 days. As of Monday, March 23, AAA calculates the average gallon of regular gas is $3.956 in the U.S., over $1 more than a month ago.

"If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!" Trump said in a Truth Social post on the evening of Saturday, March 21.

But by Monday morning, Trump backed off the potential escalation, saying the U.S. and Iran had "very good and productive conversations."

"BASED ON THE TENOR AND TONE OF THESE IN DEPTH, DETAILED, AND CONSTRUCTIVE CONVERSATIONS, WHICH WILL CONTINUE THROUGHOUT THE WEEK, I HAVE INSTRUCTED THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO POSTPONE ANY AND ALL MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST IRANIAN POWER PLANTS AND ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A FIVE DAY PERIOD, SUBJECT TO THE SUCCESS OF THE ONGOING MEETINGS AND DISCUSSIONS," the March 23 Truth Social post stated.

Iranian state media has said no negotiations have taken place and described Trump’s decision to postpone an attack on energy facilities as him “backing down.”

Trump told reporters on March 23 that they are planning to have talks with Iranian leaders that could end the war soon if they go well.

“Otherwise, we’ll just keep bombing our little hearts out,” Trump said.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a veteran of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran's parliament speaker, said the U.S. and Iran had not negotiated.

"No negotiations have been held with the US, and fakenews is used to manipulate the financial and oil markets and escape the quagmire in which the US and Israel are trapped," Ghalibaf said in a post on X on March 23 after Trump's comments.

Contributing: Kate Perez, Christopher Cann, Bart Jansen, USA TODAY

Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X (Twitter), Threads, Bluesky and TikTok.