Danielle Pletka assesses the impact of President Donald Trump’s decision when waging war against Iran.
No, again, the war with Iran is not lost. It could be, but it ain’t over yet. As usual, all is in the hands of President Donald Trump. And as usual, the most serious obstacles to victory are to be found in the choices Trump makes: People, planning, and purpose.
Beyond the machinations within the Trump administration (JD Vance, his cronies at DoD, their concerted leaking campaigns), once again, the President’s choice for key negotiator on some of the most critical national security threats of his term is costing him time, costing the United States taxpayer money, and risking defeat. Steve Witkoff, who may not be a terrible person, is nonetheless a terrible negotiator, immodest when modesty is imperative, ill-advised by his sole key adviser — himself, inexperienced on basic questions (the nature of the Iranian regime; the nature of Vladimir Putin), and a serial leaker, too often manipulating his audience against the President’s objectives. (And yes, Mr. Witkoff, journalists are dreadful gossips.)
Similarly, on the tangential, but critical question of Lebanon and Hezbollah, Donald Trump’s go-to guy, Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, gets almost everything wrong. …
… And then there’s the top guy himself. Unlike so many, I am deeply grateful to Donald Trump for making hard decisions. He deserves enormous credit for making the call on Iran in the first place. But his waffling is frustrating and counterproductive. Because there is no chain of command or process within the Trump administration, the President is buffeted by his mates and cronies, swinging wildly from one position to the next. Are we in a ceasefire or not? Is Hormuz important or is it not? The nukes must all go, or not? We support the Iranian people, or not? Iranian sponsorship of terrorism matters, or doesn’t? Hezbollah must be eliminated, or not? Kharg? UAE and Saudi security? Regime change? Unconditional surrender?
In every instance in the list above, the President has taken one and the other position, often sequentially.
