GO GET YOUR OWN OIL!: It’s manifestly clear that President Donald Trump is done with the Iran War after 33 days, and that his plan to end the U.S. part of it is to simply declare victory and go home. The day began yesterday with the Truth Social post shortly after 7 a.m. in which he remonstrated America’s allies for their refusal “to get involved in the decapitation of Iran.”
“All of those countries that can’t get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump fumed, “I have a suggestion for you: Number 1, buy from the U.S., we have plenty, and Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT.”
“You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us,” Trump said. “The hard part is done. Go get your own oil!”
It was a theme War Secretary Pete Hegseth, just back from a secret visit to the troops in the theater, echoed at his morning briefing at the Pentagon. “I think other countries should pay attention when the President speaks,” Hegseth said. “He’s pointing out, you know, you might want to start learning how to fight for yourself.”
HEGSETH REVEALS SECRET TRIP TO MEET TROOPS DEPLOYED TO MIDDLE EAST
WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL? After considering the various unpalatable options for using military force to take control of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump decided there was no need to do anything. The Strait, he says, will just open up by itself.
“If France or some other country wants to get oil or gas, they’ll go up through the Hormuz Strait, they’ll go right up there, and they’ll be able to fend for themselves,” Trump said at a White House signing ceremony in the late afternoon. “I think it will be very safe actually. But we have nothing to do with that … China, China will go up and they’ll fuel up their beautiful ships and they’ll leave and they’ll take care of themselves. There’s no reason for us to do it.”
Earlier in the morning, Trump singled out France for particular opprobrium. “France wouldn’t let planes headed to Israel, loaded up with military supplies, fly over French territory. France has been VERY UNHELPFUL,” Trump posted on Truth Social, adding his now routine postscript. “The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!”
‘WE’LL BE LEAVING VERY SOON’: At the White House event, Trump said both that regime change was never his goal, and then in the next breath that it had been achieved. “We have regime change. We have nice new leaders.”
“We’re finishing the job,” Trump said, estimating that it would take “maybe two weeks, maybe a couple of days longer.” There are still targets to be bombed, he said. “We want to knock out every single thing they have.”
“I had one goal. They will have no nuclear weapon, and that goal has been attained. They will not have nuclear weapons,” Trump insisted. “It’ll take 15 to 20 years for them to rebuild what we’ve done to them.”
Trump has also dropped the demand that Iran dismantle its nuclear program, and he made no mention of the 1,000 pounds of enriched uranium that — if recovered from the rubble of last summer’s strikes — could be used to make 11 atomic bombs. “It’s possible that we’ll make a deal,” Trump said. “If they come to the table, that’ll be good. But, it doesn’t matter whether they come or not.”
TRUMP SAYS IRAN DOESN’T HAVE TO MAKE A DEAL FOR WAR TO END
Good Wednesday 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.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP OR READ BACK ISSUES OF DAILY ON DEFENSE
NOTE TO READERS: Remember, today is April Fools Day. Time to fondly recall that famous George W. Bush quote, “There’s an old saying in Tennessee — I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, ‘Fool me once, shame on… shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”
Keep your guard up.
HAPPENING TONIGHT: ‘AN IMPORTANT UPDATE ON IRAN’: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X last night that Trump will “give an Address to the Nation to provide an important update on Iran” at 9 p.m. tonight.
BURNS: CEDING THE STRAIT WOULD BE ‘A SIGNIFICANT DEFEAT’: Former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Nicolas Burns warned this morning that leaving Iran as the “toll keeper” of the Strait of Hormuz would be “a significant defeat for the United States.”
“It’s just not realistic,” Burns said in an appearance on CNN. “It’s irresponsible to suggest that somehow we’re going to leave the war, leave everyone in the global economy worse off, the Strait of Hormuz closed, and an economic global economic and energy crisis we started.”
“He cannot leave with a job unfinished,” Burns told CNN’s Erica Hill. “If he leaves with the Strait closed, Iran is the toll keeper on the Strait of Hormuz, which was not the case on February 28th when the war began.”
“So you know, we could have a situation where Iran has lost every day of this war because of the brilliance of the American military, and yet on the final day of the war, when we leave the world in a different situation.”
IRAN SAYS US-ISRAEL STRIKE KNOCKED DESALINATION PLANT OFFLINE IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ
ALSO TODAY: This morning Trump plans to attend the oral arguments at the Supreme Court in the case of Trump v Barbara, in which the the administration is challenging the interpretation of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.”
Trump wants to deny citizenship to children born to parents who are in the United States illegally or temporarily, and in a brief filed ahead of today’s arguments, contends “The Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause was adopted to grant citizenship to freed slaves and their children — not to children of temporarily present aliens or illegal aliens.”
The high court convenes at 10 a.m.
TRUMP SAYS HE’LL ATTEND SUPREME COURT HEARING ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP
RUBIO: ‘WHY ARE WE IN NATO?’: In an appearance last night on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that after the Iran war is over, “We’re going to have to reexamine the value of NATO and that alliance for our country.”
Trump — who has bullied, disparaged, and threatened America’s NATO allies, while failing to consult any of them before launching the war on Iran — has made no secret of his disenchantment with the U.K. France, Italy, and Spain, who have denied overflight or basing right to U.S. warplanes taking part in Operation Epic Fury.
“If now we have reached a point where the NATO alliance means that we can’t use those bases that, in fact — that we can no longer use those bases to defend America’s interests, then NATO is a one-way street. That NATO is simply about us having troops in Europe to defend Europe,” Rubio told Hannity last night. “We’re not asking them to conduct air strikes. When we need them to allow us to use their military bases, their answer is no, then why are we in NATO?”
“I’ve been one of the strongest defenders of NATO during my time as a United States senator because I found great value in it. It wasn’t just about defending Europe. I said it also allowed us to have military bases in Europe that allowed us to project power into different parts of the world when our national security was threatened,” Rubio said. “Why do we have billions and billions of dollars, hundreds of billions of dollars, over the years, trillions of dollars, and all these American forces stationed in the region if … in our time of need, we’re not going to be allowed to use those bases?”
“Ultimately, that’s a decision for the president to make and he’ll have to make it,” Rubio said.
ITALY REFUSED US WAR PLANES ACCESS TO AIRBASE, CLAIMS ‘NO FRICTIONS’ WITH WHITE HOUSE
THAT DIDN’T LAST LONG: When performer Kid Rock posted two short videos on social media Saturday showing him waving and saluting a U.S. Army Apache attack helicopter as it hovered alongside his swimming pool at his Tennessee home, the Army suspended the crew while it investigated whether any flight protocols were violated.
Kid Rock, who is an enthusiastic supporter of President Trump, told the Associated Press he thought it was “really cool” that two Apache helicopters stopped to hover at his house. “I’ve talked to some of these pilots. I’ve told them, ‘You guys see me waving when you come by the house?’ I’m like, ‘You guys are always welcome to cruise by my house, any time,’” he said.
“I think they’re going to be all right. My buddy’s the commander in chief,” he said.
Sure enough, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was quick to countermand the killjoys at the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade at Fort Campbell. “Thank you @KidRock @USArmy pilots suspension LIFTED. No punishment. No Investigation. Carry on, patriots,” Hegseth posted on X
Asked about the incident at the White House yesterday, President Trump conceded the pilots “probably shouldn’t have been doing it.
“You’re not supposed to be playing games, right?” Trump said. “But, I’d take a look at it. They like Kid Rock. I like Kid Rock. Maybe they were trying to defend him. I don’t know.
HEGSETH LIFTS SUSPENSIONS OF APACHE HELICOPTER CREWS WHO FLEW BY KID ROCK’S HOUSE
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump says Iran doesn’t have to make a deal for war to end
Washington Examiner: Hegseth reveals secret trip to meet troops deployed to Middle East
Washington Examiner: What we learned about the Iran war one month in from latest Hegseth briefing
Washington Examiner: Hegseth avoids bashing media in latest Iran war briefing
Washington Examiner: Iran says US-Israel strike knocked desalination plant offline in Strait of Hormuz
Washington Examiner: Israel says it will occupy southern Lebanon after ground invasion
Washington Examiner: Italy refused US war planes access to airbase, claims ‘no frictions’ with White House
Washington Examiner: Hegseth lifts suspensions of Apache helicopter crews who flew by Kid Rock’s house
Washington Examiner: US journalist Shelly Kittleson kidnapped in Baghdad, Iraqi government confirms
Washington Examiner: Russian oil tanker docks at Cuban port after Trump greenlights entry
Washington Examiner: Trump reveals first look at presidential library in Miami
Washington Examiner: Honoring WWII veteran Bud Anderson
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Don’t be fooled. Iraq isn’t the partner Washington thinks it is
Washington Examiner: Editorial: America’s Maginot lines of defense
AP: Trump criticizes European allies for not helping fix the damage his war against Iran has caused
Wall Street Journal: U.A.E. Wants to Force Hormuz Open and Is Willing to Join the Fight
Defense One: ‘Not Good News’: Iran’s Damage to US Radar Plane Harms Military’s Battlefield Awareness
Wall Street Journal: Years Before Prince Sultan Attack, U.S. Officials Sounded Alarm About Gulf Bases
The War Zone: Bunkers for US Bases In Middle East Now a Top Priority for Pentagon
AP: Iran Remains a Stubborn Foe After Absorbing Massive US-Israeli Attacks
The Hill: Hegseth to Testify Before Congress for First Time Since Start of Iran War
Task & Purpose: Air Force Reactivates Reaper Drone Squadron at Nevada Base
DefenseScoop: Pentagon Preparing for Drone Swarm ‘Crucible’
Fox News: More Key US allies Block Military Flights as Iran War Rift Widens with Trump
AP: Russian military plane crashes in annexed Crimea, killing 29 people on board
Air & Space Forces Magazine: A-10 Fleet in Middle East Poised to Double as Jets Cross the Atlantic
Air & Space Forces Magazine: F-35 from Nellis Air Force Base Crashes in Nevada
Air & Space Forces Magazine: How the Space Force Is Supporting NASA’s Artemis II Mission
Breaking Defense: Rheinmetall Teams with Boeing for German Ghost Bat Offer
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Nation’s Top Airmen Honor Bud Anderson as Legendary WWII Triple Ace Buried at Arlington
AP: Kryptos’ final code remains unsolved. The CIA sculpture’s creator is auctioning the solution
THE CALENDAR:
WEDNESDAY | APRIL 1 | APRIL FOOLS DAY
9 a.m. 1700 Army Navy Dr., Arlington, Virginia — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies fourth annual Spacepower Security Forum, withGen. B. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations; andLt. Gen. Dennis Bythewood, commander, U.S. Space Forces, Army Navy Country Club, 1700 Army Navy Dr., Arlington, Va. https://www.mitchellaerospacepower.org/events/2026-spacepower-security-forum/
9:30 a.m. 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace discussion: “Regional Shockwaves: Long-Term Implications of the U.S.-Israel-Iran War,” Abigail Hauslohner, Financial Times Mideast and Africa foreign affairs correspondent; Marwan Muasher, CEIP vice president for studies; Karim Sadjadpour, CEIP Middle East Program senior fellow; Sarah Yerkes, CEIP Middle East Program senior fellow; and Nicole Grajewski, CEIP Nuclear Policy Program nonresident scholar https://carnegieendowment.org/events
THURSDAY | APRIL 2
11 a.m. — Washington Institute for Near East Policy virtual forum: “Diplomacy During War: Priorities for the Trump Administration,” with Emily Harding, director, Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Intelligence, National Security, and Technology Program; Richard Nephew, WINEP adjunct fellow; Michael Singh, WINEP senior fellow; and Nancy Youssef, defense journalist at the Atlantic https://washingtoninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register
2 p.m. — Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft virtual discussion: “What is the New Paradigm of U.S.-Venezuela Relations Post-Maduro?” with Francisco Rodriguez, professor of practice of international and public affairs, University of Denver School of Global and Public Affairs; Julia Buxton, professor, justice studies at Liverpool John Moores University; Orlando Perez, professor, political science at the University of North Texas at Dallas; and Lee Schlenker, research associate with the Quincy Institute’s Global South Program https://quincyinst.org/events/what-is-the-new-paradigm-of-u-s-venezuela-relations
FRIDAY | APRIL 3
10 a.m. — National Institute for Deterrence Studies virtual seminar: “The Challenges to Ensuring Nuclear Deterrence,” with Air Force Lt. Gen. Jason Armagost, deputy commander, Global Strike Command https://thinkdeterrence.com/events/the-challenges-to-ensuring-nuclear-deterrence11 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “Adapting Under Fire: Ukraine’s Race to Reinvent Modern Defense,” with active-duty air defense operators from the Ukrainian army and air force, and Kateryna Bondar, fellow, CSIS Wadhwani AI Center https://www.csis.org/events/adapting-under-fire-ukraines-race-reinvent-modern-defense
