Ross Douthat

be doing differently?

So if I'm an Iranian trying to- But isn't, I just don't understand the

the realism of this vision.

And again, I understand that you're not speaking for President Trump, and this is not what he personally wants to do.

But this is... I just want to say...

that honestly I have been somewhat confused from the beginning by the administration's stated justifications for the war, which have had the military component that you've described, but have also sort of shifted around, sometimes have involved regime change, sometimes have not.

I don't think that there has been a sort of certain through line in the administration's arguments.

I'm actually in certain ways almost more confused by your articulation of your vision, because it seems like in some moments you're saying, well, it is all going according to plan.

And then in other moments you're saying, well, it's going according to plan, except that the president might change the plan completely and make an unwise deal.

Is there, from your perspective,

any kind of planning inside the administration that is close to your own views?

How do you think your vision fits together with what the administration actually thinks it's doing?

And that holds true even if Trump makes a political deal now in order to reopen the straits and bring military operations to an end.

You would say it's a success, but it's just a limited success.

think people listening to this conversation can tell that i find the entire strategic approach of both the trump administration and people like yourself who support the trump administration up to a point but wanted to go further i'm confused by it right but and i'm also confused by the state of u.s israel alignment right now so is it a problem that there is some kind of difference between

what the United States is committed to and what its military partner is committed to.

Does that matter?

That's a great Trumpian phrase.

I also want the world to be low key on missiles.

Right.