TIGHT-LIPPED TRUMP: With the exception of taking a few random phone calls from news organizations, President Donald Trump has limited his communication with the American people about the joint U.S.-Israeli war on tightly scripted videos and social media messages. On his flight back to Washington from Mar-a-Lago, Trump did not answer reporters’s questions, and on his public schedule the only open event today is an 11 a.m. Medal of Honor presentation ceremony.
In one of those random phone calls, Trump told the Daily Mail that the war was always envisioned as lasting about a month. “It’s always been a four-week process. We figured it will be four weeks or so. It’s always been about a four-week process so, as strong as it is — it’s a big country — it’ll take four weeks, or less.”
In a separate phone call with NBC News, Trump said the military campaign — dubbed “Operation Epic Fury” by the U.S. and “Roaring Lion” by Israel — was ahead of schedule, with the successful day one killings of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of other top Iranian leaders. “When we get 48 leaders, that’s a big event.”
“Combat operations continue at this time in full force, and they will continue until all of our objectives are achieved. We have very strong objectives,” Trump said in his Sunday video update. In the recorded video Trump acknowledged the deaths of three U.S. military service members who he said were “killed in action,” and vowed to “avenge their deaths.”
“We grieve for the true American patriots who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, even as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives,” he said.
The U.S. military withheld details of the circumstances of the deaths along with the serious wounding of five other U.S. troops, “out of respect for the families,” but reports say the U.S. Army troops died in a missile attack on a sustainment unit in Kuwait. “Sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is. Likely be more,” Trump said. “But we’ll do everything possible where that won’t be the case.”
THREE US FIGHTER JETS DOWNED IN KUWAIT IN ‘FRIENDLY FIRE’ ACCIDENT
HEGSETH, CAINE TO BRIEF: For two days the Pentagon and the military provided no briefings for reporters, but this morning at 8 a.m. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Dan Caine are scheduled to hold an on-camera press briefing at the Pentagon.
The U.S. Central Command is exercising tight messaging control, publishing scant information on its public website, and posting only bare bones updates on social media.
In its initial announcement of the beginning of hostilities, CENTCOM did reveal that its Task Force Scorpion Strike “employed low-cost one-way attack drones for the first time in combat,” and in a post on X confirmed U.S. B-2 stealth bombers, armed with 2,000-pound bombs, struck Iran’s “hardened ballistic missile facilities.”
Other posts on social media boasted about America having “most powerful military on earth,” and “cutting off the head of the snake,” while accusing Iran of lying about its targeting of U.S. military facilities in the region and a U.S. aircraft carrier. “Iran’s IRGC claims to have struck USS Abraham Lincoln with ballistic missiles. LIE. The Lincoln was not hit. The missiles launched didn’t even come close,” CENTCOM said.
CENTCOM has posted a short video showing Iranian planes and command centers being destroyed by U.S. airpower, and emailed a fact sheet to reporters yesterday saying 1,000 targets had been hit, but gave no details. The fact sheet listed two dozen weapons systems currently operating in the theater, with the notation that the list did not include “special capabilities we can’t list here.”
But the few specifics published come directly from Trump, via Truth Social.
“I have just been informed that we have destroyed and sunk 9 Iranian Naval Ships, some of them relatively large and important,” he posted yesterday. “ We are going after the rest — They will soon be floating at the bottom of the sea, also!”
HOW THE CIA PLANNED THE PERFECT MOMENT TO KILL IRAN’S KHAMENEI AFTER MONTHS OF SURVEILLANCE
THE BIG QUESTION: ‘WHY NOW?’: In another break with past practices, there were no administration officials appearing on any of the Sunday shows to make the case for President Trump’s decision to end negotiations with Iran and launch an all out war for regime change.
The reason was “very simple,” Trump told NBC. “They weren’t willing to stop their nuclear research …They weren’t willing to say they will not have a nuclear weapon.” In announcing the beginning of “major combat operations” Saturday, Trump said the U.S. “sought repeatedly to make a deal.”
“We tried,” Trump said. “But Iran refused, just as it has for decades and decades. They rejected every opportunity to renounce their nuclear ambitions. And we can’t take it anymore”
Yesterday Republican senators, who had been briefed by the White House Saturday, served as surrogates to make the administration’s case, that even absent an imminent threat from Iran, the time to strike was now, when the Iranian regime was at its weakest point in nearly half a century.
“We have a chance here. Not only take the mothership of terrorism down, Iran, we also have a chance to eliminate one of the most lethal proxies in the Mideast, Hezbollah,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said on Fox last night. “They’re weak. We can take them out, and we should take them out. Between the United States and Israel, we’ve got these bastards on the ropes. Finish them off.”
“Why now?,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said on CNN “Let me tell you why now, because this is the opportunity where the regime is at the very weakest point it has been for 47 years.”
“What I urged President Trump on Friday, I said, this regime is teetering. It is hanging by a thread. Do not miss this opportunity,” Cruz said. “Remember, this ayatollah has for months hired hit men with the stated purpose of murdering President Donald J. Trump.”
IRANIAN ATTACKS KILL A DOZEN ACROSS ISRAEL, UAE, AND KUWAIT
‘A DEAL WAS IN OUR REACH’: Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, who was the chief negotiator in talks with the U.S., denied that Iran refused for forswear nuclear weapons, and said as of last Thursday substantial progress had been made in negotiations with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
“Both Iranian and the U.S. delegation were happy at the end of seven hours of negotiations,” Araghchi said on ABC’s This Week. “When we concluded, the Omani foreign minister, who was the impartial intermediator between us, he concluded by saying in his post that we made significant progress this time. We were able to come to a good understanding on some of our differences.”
“Some other differences were left for the next meeting, and we decided to go for Vienna, to send our technical teams to Vienna [today] to go to the IAEA, and with the help of the International Atomic Energy Organization, try to find technical solutions for the political problems,” Araghchi said. So, a deal was at our reach, and we left Geneva happily with the understanding that we can reach a deal next time we meet.”
NEW IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER TO BE CHOSEN IN ‘ONE OR TWO DAYS’ AFTER KHAMENEI KILLED
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HAPPENING TODAY: Secretary of State Marco Rubio was scheduled to travel to Israel today, but given the events of the weekend, Rubio will instead travel to Capitol Hill, where his schedule has him briefing House and Senate Leaders at 4 p.m. Trump’s decision to launch a full scale war without consulting or seeking authorization from Congress has lit a fire under lawmakers who were already preparing War Powers Resolutions for a vote this week.
“It’s not the president’s decision for how long this lasts, or even to start it in the first place,” Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) said on CNN. “ This is a war of choice without congressional authorization, and he needs to come to Congress immediately to seek an authorization for the use of military force. Otherwise, these hostilities need to cease immediately.’
“And the number one question that Congress needs to press upon in these debates is, what’s the strategic end game?” Auchincloss said. “Because the ayatollah is dead. Well, the ayatollah was 86 years old with a cancer diagnosis. So these bombs did what biology was going to do anyways.”
The war has ignited a fierce debate about just what exactly the The War Powers Resolution of 1973 — passed over President Richard Nixon’s veto in the wake of the Vietnam War — requires. “The War Powers Resolution gives the president the authority to act for to up up to 60 days without prior congressional approval,” argues Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC). “That authority exists for moments just like this when speed matters and American lives are on the line.”
The law, which some scholars argue is unconstitutional, states: “The President in every possible instance shall consult with Congress before introducing United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into a situation where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances.”
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) one of the sponsors argues there is no imminent threat. “All of the intelligence I’ve seen in 13 years on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees tell me there is no imminent threat from Iran that justifies sending our sons and daughters into war.”
“The president can act to imminently defend the United States against imminent attack, if that happens without congressional approval needing later ratification by Congress. But if you’re going to initiate war, you need Congress,” Kaine said on Fox News Sunday. “The president not only did not come to Congress to seek a debate or vote, he acted without even notification to the vast majority of us.”
“This is an illegal war,” Kanie said. “I have a War Powers Resolution queued up for vote this week, and I’m encouraging my colleagues to assert the constitutional power vested in the legislative branch.
On CBS, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) predicted the votes will back Trump’s decision to us the U.S. military to try to bring down the Iranian regime, especially now that U.S. forces are in harms way.
“I expect there’ll be overwhelming Republican support for our troops, for our troops, and for the president’s decision to finally eliminate the threat of Iran,” Cotton said on Face the Nation. ‘I would invite Democrats in the Congress to join their Democratic colleagues like John Fetterman and Josh Gottheimer and Greg Landsman in supporting our troops in finally putting America’s foot down against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
RUBIO ALERTED GANG OF EIGHT BEFORE IRAN ATTACK, IN CONTRAST TO VENEZUELA MISSION
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: US and Israel launch ‘preemptive’ attack against Iran
Washington Examiner: Trump announces ‘massive and ongoing operation’ against Iran
Washington Examiner: Iran operation to last four weeks, Trump says
Washington Examiner: Three US service members killed in operations against Iran, CENTCOM says
Washington Examiner: Trump predicts more US deaths in Iran operation
Washington Examiner: Iranian attacks kill a dozen across Israel, UAE, and Kuwait
Washington Examiner: New Iranian supreme leader to be chosen in ‘one or two days’ after Khamenei killed
Washington Examiner: US uses ‘low-cost one-way attack drones’ for first time in combat during Iran strikes
Washington Examiner: Monitoring the situation: White House releases photos of Trump, Rubio and team being briefed on Iran operation
Washington Examiner: Rubio alerted Gang of Eight before Iran attack, in contrast to Venezuela mission
Washington Examiner: Trump dodges questions on Iran after returning to Washington
Washington Examiner: B-2 stealth bombers hit Iranian ballistic missile sites with 2,000-pound bombs: CENTCOM
Washington Examiner: Trump says US has sunk nine Iranian navy ships and ‘largely destroyed’ headquarters
Washington Examiner: How the CIA planned the perfect moment to kill Iran’s Khamenei after months of surveillance
Washington Examiner: UK, France, and Germany jump into the fray in Iran, vowing to defend Gulf allies
Washington Examiner: Texas bar shooting suspect wore ‘Property of Allah’ clothing with Iranian flag
Washington Examiner: Israel struck Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, IDF says
Washington Examiner: DHS releasing some illegal border crossers into US despite claims of ‘zero’ releases
Washington Examiner: As war in Ukraine enters fifth year, peace remains elusive
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Opinion: Khamenei is dead. We’re about to learn how many terrorists crossed the US border
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Trump shakes Iran’s tree to see what falls out
AP: War Powers Debate Intensifies After Trump Orders Attack on Iran Without Approval by Congress
AP: US intel did not suggest a preemptive strike from Iran before US-Israeli attacks, AP sources say
Washington Post: Push from Saudis, Israel Helped Move Trump to Attack Iran
New York Times: The C.I.A. Helped Pinpoint a Gathering of Iranian Leaders. Then Israel Struck.
AP: More than 550 people killed in Iran, Iranian Red Crescent Society says
Politico: Putin’s Friendship Has Limits—as Iran Just Found Out
Wall Street Journal: U.S. Races to Accomplish Iran Mission Before Munitions Run Out
Defense One: Shahed Drone Meets Clone in US War on Iran
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Weapons of ‘Epic Fury’: Fighters, Missiles, and ‘Special Capabilities’
The War Zone: America’s New PrSM Ballistic Missile Just Made Its Combat Debut
Breaking Defense: Here’s How Cyber Could Have Been Used to Target Iran in Operation Epic Fury
SpaceNews: Space Force Opens Secretive Space Tracking to Commercial Firms
DefenseScoop: Pentagon to Publish Open-Source Software Stack for 5G, 6G Network Innovation
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Sentinel ICBM Restructure to Bring ‘More Capability Faster,’ Top Commanders Say
Air & Space Forces Magazine: AMC Boss: New Airlifter, Connectivity Are Top Problems to Solve
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Guard Cuts Tactical Air Control Units, Adds Cyber Operators
CBSA: Breaking the Double Bind: U.S. Defense Strategy and Multi-Theater Deterrence
THE CALENDAR:
MONDAY | MARCH 2
9:15 a.m. 430 Dirksen — U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission hearing: “Part of Your World: U.S.-China Competition Under the Sea,” with Navy Vice Adm. Richard Seif, commander,
Naval Submarine Forces; and Navy Rear Adm. Mike Brookes, commander, Office of Naval Intelligence; Jason Hsu, senior fellow, Hudson Institute; Seaver Wang, director of climate and energy at the Breakthrough Institute; and David Calhoun, director at Baron https://www.uscc.gov
12 p.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “U.S. and Israel Strike Iran — What Comes Next?” with CSIS experts Mona Yacoubian, Seth Jones, Emily Harding, and Clayton Seigle https://www.csis.org/events/us-and-israel-strike-iran-what-comes-next
12 p.m. — Foreign Policy webinar: “Is Cuba Next?” with Peter Kornbluh, director, George Washington University National Security Archives Cuba Documentation Project https://foreignpolicy.com/live/is-cuba-next/?
12 p.m. — Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies virtual book discussion: Warhead: How the Brain Shapes War and War Shapes the Brain with author Nicholas Wright, affiliated scholar, Georgetown University Medical Center for Clinical bioethics https://sais.jhu.edu/campus-events?
12 p.m. — Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft virtual discussion: “The Trump Doctrine,” with Asli Bali, non-resident fellow, Quincy Institute and professor at Yale Law School; Aziz Rana, non-resident fellow, Quincy Institute and professor of law at Cornell University; and Trita Parsi, co-founder and executive vice president of the Quincy Institute https://quincyinst.org/events/the-trump-doctrine
12 p.m. — Washington Institute for Near East Policy virtual forum: “Ukraine Diplomacy and the Middle East,” with retired Lt. Gen. Joseph Kellogg, former special presidential envoy for Ukraine; and Anna Borshchevskaya, WINEP senior fellow https://washingtoninstitute-org.zoom.us/webinar/register
TUESDAY | MARCH 3
8 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute discussion: “Securing Venezuela’s Freedom after Maduro,” with Leopoldo Lopez, Venezuelan opposition leader https://www.hudson.org/events/securing-venezuelas-freedom-after-maduro
9 a.m. 226 Dirksen — Senate Judiciary Committee hearing: “Oversight of the Homeland Security Department,” with testimony from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem http://judiciary.senate.gov
9:30 a.m. 216 Hart — Senate Armed Services Committee hearing: “Update on the National Defense Strategy,” with testimony from Elbridge Colby, undersecretary of defense for policy http://www.armed-services.senate.gov
12 p.m. — Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft virtual book discussion: Israel, Palestine, U.S. complicity, and the March to War with Iran, with author Robert Malley, lecturer and senior fellow, Yale Jackson School; Khaled Elgindy, senior fellow, Quincy Institute Middle East Program; and Trita Parsi, co-founder and executive vice president of the Quincy Institute https://quincyinst.org/events/book-talk
9:30 a.m. — Henry L. Stimson Center virtual discussion: “North Korea’s Ninth Party Congress: Domestic and Global Implications,” with former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation Vann Van Diepen; Michael Madden, founder of North Korea Leadership Watch and nonresident fellow, Stimson Center 38 North Program; Rachel Minyoung Lee, senior fellow, Stimson Center’s 38 North Program; and Jenny Town, director, Stimson Center’s 38 North Program https://www.stimson.org/event/north-koreas-ninth-party-congress
6 p.m. 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center and the Sheridan Libraries and University Museums discussion: “How Are Marine Robots Shaping Our Future?,” with James Bellingham, executive director, Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy; and Neil Greenfieldboyce, science correspondent for NPR https://hub.jhu.edu/events/2026/03/03/
QUOTE OF THE DAY: “We are now using that military for good. We want to have it for good purpose. We’re undertaking this massive operation not merely to ensure security for our own time and place, but for our children and their children, just as our ancestors have done for us many, many years ago. This is the duty and the burden of a free people. These actions are right and they are necessary to ensure that Americans will never have to face a radical, bloodthirsty terrorist regime, armed with nuclear weapons and lots of threats.” President Donald Trump, in his recorded video remarks Sunday
