President Donald Trump participates in a bilateral meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (not pictured) in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., July 14, 2026.(Evan Vucci/Reuters)
The president should spare the country another protracted humiliation in Iran and rip the Band-Aid off now.
Those who predicted that Trump would slink away from the war he started had ample evidence in support of that conclusion. The president’s special brand of inconstancy, the public’s distaste for the war and its consequences, and the capabilities Iran held in reserve would conspire, they presumed, to force Trump to abandon his objectives and settle with his Iranian adversaries.
Even today, that scenario cannot be ruled out. Trump reserves the right to declare victory and retreat. But he hasn’t yet.
Trump did not allow the disastrous memorandum of understanding (MOU) to plod along, extending it indefinitely as its 60-day deadlines elapsed ...
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