Dan Driscoll was a close ally of Vice President JD Vance but clashed with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Vance is seen as standing on the ‘isolationist’ wing of the Republican Party and has accused Israel of “manipulating” US public opinion to keep the Iran war going. Hegseth is one of the war’s strongest defenders
A recent classified assessment advised that prolonged large-scale operations in the Middle East risk weakening U.S. capabilities elsewhere.
Republican senators are criticizing the handling of an emergency request for $70 billion in defense spending to cover the costs of the Iran war. They warn that the Pentagon will need to explain its war plan better to get the money
Factoring in repairs to bases and replacing destroyed military equipment would bring the cost to $40 billion to $50 billion, and the real cost will likely exceed even that figure
In the Situation Room, Trump didn’t sit in his usual position at the head of the table. Instead, he sat on one side, facing large wall screens. Netanyahu sat directly opposite, and on the screen behind Netanyahu was the director of Mossad. They convinced Trump to make war on Iran (an Israeli target for over 40 years), even though US experts & Vance disagreed.
Pete Hegseth talks trash ■ mass displacement in Iran, Lebanon ■ Trump “had a feeling,” started a war ■ food, fuel, shelter shortages in Gaza as new genocide report emerges ■ more
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced airstrikes would intensify across Iran, telling reporters on Wednesday that U.S. forces were delivering “death and destruction from the sky all day long.”
Israel kills at least 78 across Gaza, 5 in West Bank; US will pay $1M a day toward shady “aid” services; new Gaza death estimates much higher than before; Iran damage; War Powers Resolution; more.
In a wide-ranging interview, senior Houthi leader Mohammed al-Bukhaiti said Trump can end the battle in the Red Sea by forcing Netanyahu to stop Israel’s genocidal war.
Israel “fabricates” terror claims; Hamas ranks reportedly swell to 25K; Israel gets 3 new fighter jets from US; Trump admin stirs up trouble with Yemen’s Houthis; more.