The impulsive style of the American president has never been tested during a sustained military conflict. As Donald Trump’s appetite for risk waned, his fears grew.
Trump is a president who relies on drama, offering a more intense version of his unorthodox, maximalist approach in a new situation – the fight in a war. In public, he oscillates between opposing approaches, one belligerent, the other conciliatory, and behind the scenes, he grapples with the consequences when things go wrong, according to a comprehensive analysis published by Wall Street Journal.
At the same time, Trump sometimes loses focus, spending time on the details of his plans for the White House ballroom or fundraising for midterm elections and telling advisors that he wants to move on to other topics.
Trump faces his own fear of ordering US troops to face danger on the battlefield, as some soldiers will be injured, and others will not return home - a challenge similar to that of other presidents who have waged war, say individuals familiar with the situation to the American newspaper.
Haunted by the ghost of Carter
The tension at the White House on Good Friday afternoon is evoked by WSJ, when in a nearly empty West Wing, shortly after learning that an American plane had been shot down in Iran and the two crew members were missing, Trump shouted at advisors for hours on end.
"Europeans are not helping," he complained repeatedly. The average gasoline prices were $4.09. Images of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis - one of the biggest foreign policy failures in recent presidential history - were on his mind, according to people who spoke with him.
"If you look at what happened with Jimmy Carter… with the helicopters and hostages, it cost him the elections. What a mess," Trump had said in March.
Now, Carter's political ghost haunted Trump as the situation in Iran deteriorated.
Trump resisted the temptation to send American soldiers to conquer Kharg Island, for example, the starting point for 90% of Iran's oil exports. Although he was told the mission would succeed and provide the US with access to the Strait of Hormuz, he feared there would be unacceptably high American casualties, administration members said.
However, he made risky statements without involving his national security team, and WSJ includes here his post about plans to destroy the Iranian civilization, a maneuver through which he tried to make Tehran officials negotiate.
Trump's Style, Tested for the First Time in a War
Trump advocated for ending wars, but he bet that with America's air and naval power, he could solve a national security problem that has troubled seven American presidents.
Now, the armistice is in question, a critical trade route has been closed for weeks, and the Iranian regime has been replaced by new and radical leaders, all threatening to extend an operation that Trump repeatedly said would last only six weeks - a deadline already missed since the start of the war on February 28.
The impulsive style of the president has never been tested during a sustained military conflict, writes the American daily. Unlike the successful operation in Venezuela that boosted his confidence, Trump faces a more challenging adversary in Iran who has not yet shown willingness to comply with his demands.
"We are witnessing amazing military successes that do not translate into victory, and this is directly caused by the president and how he chose to do his job - lack of attention to details and lack of planning," said Kori Schake, a senior researcher at the right-wing American Enterprise Institute, who was part of former President George W. Bush's National Security Council.
A Complicated Adventure in a Place of "Blood and Sand"
Trump's decision to venture into war surprised many who knew him best. "Blood and sand," he told advisors in his first term to describe the region, explaining why he was not interested in being involved in any conflict in the Middle East, writes WSJ.
After a convincing briefing in February by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Situation Room and repeated discussions with a group of allies, including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, Trump said he trusted the military to succeed, citing the example of the intervention in Venezuela to his advisors.
Trump did not make much effort to convince the American public of the necessity of war and soon became frustrated that his administration was not receiving the expected praise.
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, did not hide her dissatisfaction with what she considered unfair media coverage of the administration. Her team showed her the results of polls for the midterm elections in November, indicating that the war was dragging down Republican candidates.
However, Trump believed that a victory over Iran would give him the chance to reshape the global order as he had failed to do in his first term, said two senior officials. At the beginning of the military operation, he stated that, "if we do things right, we save the world," a source told WSJ.
What Annoys Trump the Most
The Strait of Hormuz has been a particular source of frustration, with Trump expressing his irritation at the vulnerability of this vital waterway.
Publicly, he oscillated between seeking support from allies to help reopen it and insisting that the US neither needs nor wants military assistance.
The blockade affected approximately 20% of global oil supply, and US energy CEOs quickly became nervous.
Energy leaders feared that the war would lead to price hikes if Trump continued an escalation to match his rhetoric, say individuals familiar with the situation.
According to close sources, in calls with advisors, including Chris Wright (Secretary of Energy) and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Trump oscillated between taking into account economic concerns and insisting on continuing the war. At the same time, the American president quickly began to reflect on how the military action could turn into a disaster.
In a discussion with Republican congressmen in Doral, Florida, just over a week after the start of the war, Trump evoked Democratic presidents who coordinated foreign policy disasters, including the withdrawal from Afghanistan during Joe Biden's term. Then, he insisted on Carter's failed attempt to save American hostages in Iran.
The president's contradictory impulses, manifested in the early morning posts he makes, worried his advisors, and the repeated crises caused by the war led to conflicts within the American administration, culminating in Trump's threat to destroy the Iranian civilization, WSJ further writes.
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