Trump Foreign Policy
April 11, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Centcom has announced that it is clearing the Strait of Hormuz for free passage. The announcement reads: U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces began setting conditions for clearing mines in the Strait of Hormuz, April 11, as two U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers conducted operations. USS Frank E. Peterson (DDG 121) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) transited the Strait of Hormuz and operated in the Arabian Gulf as part of a
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April 11, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Borrowing a phrase Yeats’s poem “Sailing to Byzantium,” I want to flag Brendan O’Neill’s Spiked interview with historian and former Israeli Ambassador to the United States Michael Oren. Spiked itself flags the interview as “We can’t make peace with a terrorist state.” I have posted video at the bottom. In the interview O’Neill and Oren take up where we were, where we are, and what lies ahead in our conflict
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April 10, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah continue. “I spoke with Bibi and he’s going to low-key it” in Lebanon, President Trump said to NBC News yesterday. The day before President Trump described the conflict as “a separate skirmish” from the one covered by the terms of the ceasefire with Iran. Now Israel is to undertake negotiations with Lebanon next week, but Israel’s conflict is not with Lebanon. It is with the
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April 9, 2026 — Scott Johnson
What is the status of the ceasefire? It seems not to have taken effect. Late last night President Trump posted this message on Truth Social: All U.S. Ships, Aircraft, and Military Personnel, with additional Ammunition, Weaponry, and anything else that is appropriate and necessary for the lethal prosecution and destruction of an already substantially degraded Enemy, will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL
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April 8, 2026 — John Hinderaker
This morning, there were two press conferences that addressed events in Iran. Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman Daniel Caine talked about our military operation. They emphasized the devastation that we have wreaked not only on Iran’s military forces, but on the industries necessary to rebuild those forces. The numbers are impressive: Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt briefed the press, beginning with a similar recitation of the consequences for Iran of our
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April 8, 2026 — Scott Johnson
President Trump seems to be jumping the gun on the agreement with whoever is running the show in Iran. He appears to be deeply invested in an agreement that has yet to be negotiated. “We have determined that Iran has gone through what will be a very productive ‘Regime Change!'” Maybe it all depends on what you mean by “regime change.” We shall see. In any event, he has just
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April 8, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Medal of Honor recipient David Bellavia said it: “I was reallly looking forward to Bridge and Power Plant Day.” Retired General Jack Keane, former vice chief of staff of the Army, elaborated on the dissapointment underlyling Bellavia’s remark. His was by far the most persuasive commentary on the ceasefire that I saw last night. In case you missed it… 🚨 BREAKING: Retired Four Star General Jack Keane SOUNDS THE ALARM
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April 7, 2026 — John Hinderaker
The end of the mullahs’ civilization has been called off, at least for now and probably forever. President Trump is characterizing it positively: President Trump agreed to a two-week pause on military strikes on Iran in a dramatic pivot less than 90 minutes from his 8 p.m. deadline — saying it was subject to Tehran agreeing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement on Truth Social, Trump said
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April 7, 2026 — Scott Johnson
President Trump’s “Stone Ages” message(s) to whoever is running the show in Iran appear to have had the desired effect. President Trump has announced a two-week ceasefire subject to the opening of the Strait of Hormuz while final terms of an agreement are negotiated. Further comment on my part will have to await a look at the “10 point proposal from Iran” that is to serve as a basis for
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April 7, 2026 — Scott Johnson
We are all looking for omens that foretell events coming with President Trump’s “Stone Ages” deadline for the Iranian authorities, whoever they are, at 8:00 p.m. (Easatern) this evening. I’ve read just about all the news out there this morning and it’s left me hanging. Only Donald J. Trump knows. He has just posted on Truth Social: A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I
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April 6, 2026 — John Hinderaker
Today President Trump, Secretary Pete Hegseth, General Dan Caine and CIA Director John Ratcliffe gave a press conference to talk about the rescue of two American airmen in Iran. It is very much worth watching. In the video below, it begins at around the 37 minute mark. The story is thrilling, and General Caine in particular does a great job of narrating it: The New York Times has been promoting
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April 6, 2026 — Scott Johnson
We noted President Trump’s “Tuesay will be Power Plant Day” threat to Iran on social media yesterday morning. He later reiterated his threat in an interview with the Wall Street Journal — “Trump Warns Iran He Could Strike ‘Every Power Plant,’ in WSJ Interview.” The Journal subhead quotes Trump: “If they don’t do something by Tuesday evening, they won’t have any power plants and they won’t have any bridges standing.”
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April 5, 2026 — John Hinderaker
I did several television appearances over the past week, including one on PBS’s News Hour that was taped last week. PBS interviewed me as part of their segment on the “No Kings” protest in Minneapolis. My appearance is brief, but the segment isn’t too long, either. I come on at 4:53, right after Bernie Sanders: Last night I was on the Outsiders program on Sky News Australia, with Rowan Dean,
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April 5, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Michael Doran highlights a message from President Trump blasted out to whom it may concern. Although some of his statements may be hard to read or to take at face value, this one has an authenticity that should overcome doubt. That’s how Doran seens to take it. Trump’s statement begins with “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all rolled up in one, in Iran.” In his conclusion
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April 4, 2026 — John Hinderaker
President Trump has long been frustrated with the NATO alliance, and now he is talking about withdrawing from the treaty. A few days ago, Marco Rubio articulated the administration’s concerns about the alliance: 🚨 SECRETARY RUBIO: If NATO is just about us defending Europe if they’re attacked, but them denying us basing rights when we need them, then that’s not a very good arrangement. That’s a hard one to stay
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April 3, 2026 — Scott Johnson
Marc Thiessen is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, former chief speechwriter for President Bush (43), and a current supporter of our efforts to throttle the Iranian regime. He writes a twice-weekly column for the Washington Post. In his most recent column, he advances a plan to end the war without an agreement in five steps: 1. Complete all remaining military tasks. Trump said the war will “continue
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April 2, 2026 — John Hinderaker
On the Rita Panahi Show last night, we began by talking about Iran and President Trump’s speech to the nation. We went on to the status of the NATO alliance, birthright citizenship, rogue judges and more. This 27-minute clip starts with Lefties Losing It. I come on at 6:00 and my segment runs until 19:36. After that, it is Prince Harry and Kristi Noem’s husband. Entertaining as always:
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