TRUMP: “YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO GET APPROVAL’: In remarks last night, President Donald Trump made a small confession. He has stopped calling the war with Iran a “war,” well, because, you know, wars are supposed to be approved by Congress under that whole Article 1 thing.
“I won’t use the word ‘war’ because they say if you use the word war, that’s maybe not a good thing to do,” Trump said. “They don’t like the word war because you are supposed to get approval. So I will use the word ‘military operation,’ which is really what it is. It’s a military decimation.”
Trump’s appearance at the Republican Congressional Committee’s annual fundraising dinner came on a day in which Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi insisted there are no peace talks underway, only what he called an “exchange of messages via mediators,” which he said, “does not mean negotiation with the U.S.”
“Top authorities are reviewing the offered proposals, but Tehran has no intention to hold talks with the U.S.,” Araghchi said on Iranian television. “Iran is not seeking a war and demands a permanent end to the conflict, and compensation for destruction.”
At the White House, press secretary Karoline Leavitt repeated the claim that the “United States has been engaged over the last three days in productive conversations” with unidentified Iranians.
And Trump last night told the GOP dinner that the negotiations were going on, and that the Iranians are so desperate they asked him to be their ayatollah. “We would like you to be the next supreme leader,” Trump claimed they said, out of fear they will die in the war. Trump said he turned them down, “No, thank you, I don’t want it.”
“They want to make a deal so badly, but they are afraid to say it. They figure they will be killed by their own people. They are also afraid they will be killed by us,” Trump said. “There’s never been the head of a country that wanted that job less than being the head of Iran.”
And this morning, Trump responded to Araghchi’s statements on Truth Social, calling the Iranian negotiators “very different” and “strange.”
“They are ‘begging’ us to make a deal, which they should be doing since they have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback, and yet they publicly state that they are only ‘looking at our proposal.’ WRONG!!! They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!”
US AND ISRAELI OFFICIALS INSIST IRAN’S SPEAKER IS NEGOTIATING DESPITE DENIALS
AN UNSATISFYING BRIEFING: Members of Congress were given a classified briefing behind closed doors, and most emerged complaining they knew little more than when they went in.
“We want to know more about what’s going on,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Rep. Mike Rogers (R-AL), told reporters afterward. “We’re just not getting enough answers.”
His counterpart, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told Politico, “I can see why he might have said that.”
“When we are willing to send our sons and daughters into war, that is an enormous responsibility that needs to be taken seriously, and Congress needs to have a say,” Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) said on CNN Last night. “We are now almost four weeks into this. And I would tell you the frustration reverberated in that room today.”
“I would say that you saw Republicans across the spectrum today express their frustration. You saw Republicans and Democrats alike,” said Mace, who called herself “MAGA Mace,” who supports the president. “I was not convinced when I walked out of there that troops on the ground were necessary to declare victory. I believe President Trump can declare victory now.”
“I would say disillusioned,” Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) said when asked his reaction by CNN. “And I didn’t think I could be more disillusioned than I already was.”
“There is absolutely no plan. The administration clearly can’t even understand why they’re in this war, what their strategy is to get out of it,” said Moulton, a Marine Corps veteran who served four tours in Iraq. “Every step of the way, they’re doing things, they’re changing their goals. They’re doing things that don’t even necessarily contribute to their goals. Apparently, now, their primary goal is reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which, let’s be clear, was open before Trump started this war of choice.”
IRAN REJECTS US DEAL TO END WAR AS MORE US TROOPS HEAD TO MIDDLE EAST
10,000 TARGETS DESTROYED: Meanwhile, the top commander of Operation Epic Fury posted his fourth video update on the war on X, reporting that the U.S. campaign remains “on plan, or ahead of plan in achieving very clear military objectives for eliminating Iran’s ability to project power in meaningful ways outside its borders.”
“U.S. forces have struck more than 10,000 military targets. In fact, we hit the ten-thousandth target just hours ago,” said U.S. Central Commander Adm. Brad Cooper, “If you combine what we’ve accomplished with the success of our Israeli ally, together we have struck thousands more.”
Cooper has been clear that he’s focused on continuing to destroy and degrade Iran’s military, and said it was his “operational assessment” that with 92% of the Iranian navy’s largest vessels out of commission, Iran has “now lost the ability to meaningfully project naval power and influence around the region and around the world.”
“And no matter how many targets are hit, let’s say they hit another 10,000. They’ve hit 20,000 targets. At the end of the day, what matters is what Iran does next,” said Moulton on CNN. “The administration says, hey, we don’t want Iran to project power. Well, guess what? They’re projecting a lot of power right now. They weren’t projecting much power before this war began. Now, they’re shooting drones and missiles all across the Gulf. So, it’s really gotten worse.”
RUSSIA SENDING DRONES TO IRAN TO SHORE UP WAR EFFORT: REPORT
Good Thursday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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HAPPENING TODAY: BOOTS ON THE MOVE: As the Pentagon is preparing to activate 2,000 paratroopers from the storied 82nd Airborne Division for movement to the Gulf region, the Trump administration is not revealing what plans it has for the troops, who would complement an expeditionary force of 2,500 Marines, which is about to arrive at the mouth of the Persian Gulf.
“What was frustrating, we didn’t get an answer about what they might possibly be used for,” Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) said after yesterday’s classified briefing on Capitol Hill. “It didn’t sound to me like the administration is committed to ground troops, but the lack of clarity on what the plan is, how they hope to achieve their objectives, that was a concern for just about everybody in the briefing.”
Speculation is rampant that U.S. troops may take control of Iran’s main oil distribution point at Kharg Island, where about 27,000 Iranians live and work. That’s clearly what Iran is thinking, having reportedly been “laying traps and moving additional military personnel and air defenses” to the island, according to CNN. Control of the island would cut off the oil revenue Iran has been reaping, as its tankers would no longer be able to use the Strait of Hormuz.
The other option is to take control of the Strait of Hormuz by seizing a small island in the Strait that has an airport.
“If you send Marines into Kharg Island and a bunch of them, get killed, is he really going to quit then?” asked Mounton. “So, the risk of escalation because of Trump’s idiocy is very severe. And coming out of this briefing today, I don’t have any confidence whatsoever that they have a plan, a strategy, even very clear goals for what they want to do next.”
UNDERSTANDING KHARG ISLAND: A former colleague of mine posted an excellent video describing how a U.S. assault on KHARG Island would likely be conducted. I recommend it.
MORNING RANT: In another early morning post on Truth Social, Trump vented again about his frustration with NATO.
“NATO NATIONS HAVE DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE LUNATIC NATION, NOW MILITARILY DECIMATED, OF IRAN. THE U.S.A. NEEDS NOTHING FROM NATO, BUT “NEVER FORGET” THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME!”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Iran rejects US deal to end war as more US troops head to Middle East
Washington Examiner: Trump insists Iran wants to make peace deal but is ‘afraid to say it’
Washington Examiner: US and Israeli officials insist Iran’s speaker is negotiating despite denials
Washington Examiner: White House disputes reports of ’15-point plan’ and refuses to explain ‘nitty gritty details’ of Iran negotiations
Washington Examiner: Russia sending drones to Iran to shore up war effort: Report
Washington Examiner: Pentagon announces deals aimed at boosting production of weaponry expended in Iran war
Washington Examiner: Trump to visit China in May after Iran war postponed trip
Washington Examiner: Israel funds front websites in attempt to push ChatGPT into promoting pro-war messaging
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Trump and Netanyahu’s rhetoric about imminent peace with Iran may not be what it seems
Washington Examiner: Watchdog calls for inspector general review of Oracle-Pentagon contract
Washington Examiner: Joint Ukraine-US fund approves first investment
Washington Examiner: Danish prime minister resigns after lackluster election for Social Democrats, Moderates seek to wield power
Washington Examiner: Former British PM Truss claims UK won’t back Trump’s war in Iran to ‘appease British Islamists’
Washington Examiner: American detained in Afghanistan ‘very thankful’ for returning to US and family
Washington Examiner: China prepares for submarine warfare against America
Wall Street Journal: Trump Tells Aides He Wants Speedy End to Iran War
New York Times: Trump’s Threats to Europe Put Its Leaders in a Double Bind Over Iran
Washington Post: Iran’s missiles pierce Israel’s defenses, raising doubts about interceptors
New York Times: Iran’s Attacks Force U.S. Troops to Work Remotely
The Atlantic: The U.S. and Iran Are Fighting a Massively Asymmetrical War
Wall Street Journal: Iran Is Applying the Lessons of Russia’s Drone Warfare Against America
AP: Iran war deflects attention from Ukraine as an emboldened Russia starts spring offensive
Reuters: US links security guarantees to Ukraine giving up Donbas, Zelenskiy says
Washington Post: In Trump’s war messaging, veterans see something new — and disturbing
THE CALENDAR:
THURSDAY | MARCH 26
8:45 a.m. 1735 New York Ave. NW — Defense Strategies Institute FutureG For Defense and Warfare Summit: “Empowering the Warfighter with Next Generation Network Capabilities,” with Joshua Weaver, director, spectrum initiatives and analysis in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering https://futureg.dsigroup.org/
2 p.m. — Defense One virtual discussion: “State of the Army,” with Maj. Gen. John Cogbill, commanding general, 11th Airborne https://events.defenseone.com/state-of-defense-2026
3 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW — Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion: “The Future of U.S.-Europe Relations,” with Lawrence Freedman, professor, war studies at King’s College London; Eliot Cohen, CSIS chair in strategy; and Heather Williams, director, CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues https://www.csis.org/events/future-us-europe-relations
3:30 p.m. 37th and O Sts.. NW — Georgetown University Center for Security Studies, GU Center for German and European Studies, and the GU Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies discussion: “NATO’s Northern Flank and Baltic Security,” with Swedish Armed Forces Supreme Commander Gen. Michael Claesson https://events.georgetown.edu/event/39038-natos-northern-flank
FRIDAY | MARCH 27
8:30 a.m. 11493 Sunset Hills Rd., Reston, Virginia — Government Executive Media Group forum: “Securing the Supply Chain and Managing Modern Cyber Threats,” with Defense CIO Kirsten Davies https://events.washingtontechnology.com/cmmc-supply-chain/register
