The President's Daily Brief
May 7th, 2025: Red Sea Deal Announced After Houthis ‘Capitulate’ & Hegseth’s Surprise Order
Wed, 07 May 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: President Trump says the Houthis have “capitulated” and will halt attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea—but is the danger really gone? Ukrainian drones strike deep into Russian territory, forcing all four of Moscow’s major airports to suspend operations just days before Victory Day. A surprise move from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth halts multiple U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine, blindsiding the White House in the early days of Trump’s second term. And in today’s Back of the Brief—a close call over Damascus, as Israeli and Turkish fighter jets narrowly avoid a dangerous confrontation in Syrian airspace. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. True Classic: Upgrade your wardrobe and save on @trueclassic at trueclassic.com/PDB ! #trueclassicpod Jacked Up Fitness: Go to https://GetJackedUp.com and use code BAKER at checkout to save 10% off your entire purchase Lean: Visit https://TakeLean.com & use code pb20 for 20% off Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What announcement did President Trump make about the Houthis?
It's Wednesday, the 7th of May. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. We'll start things off today with a big development in the Middle East. President Trump says that the Houthis have capitulated, agreeing to stop attacks on ships in the Red Sea. But, you may ask, is the threat really over?
Well, I'm glad you asked. We'll have those details. Later in the show, India launches airstrikes against Pakistan. Keep an eye out on this developing situation, by the way. Attacking nine sites in response to the terrorist attack in Kashmir. Because, of course, what the world needed was more tension and conflict.
Plus, just days into President Trump's second term, reportedly, a surprise order from his new defense secretary, Pete Hegseth... halted multiple U.S.
weapons shipments to Ukraine, catching the White House, reportedly, completely off guard And in today's back of the brief, a close call over Damascus Israeli and Turkish fighter jets narrowly avoided a confrontation during overlapping operations in Syrian airspace But first, today's PDB Spotlight. We'll begin with a major development out in the Middle East, where the U.S.
and Yemen's Houthi militants have reportedly reached a breakthrough ceasefire agreement. Now, in a surprise announcement, President Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. will stop bombing the Houthis in Yemen effective immediately after the Iranian-backed group allegedly consented to stop attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
and end their disruption of one of the world's most vital shipping lanes. That's according to a report from Reuters. Trump said the Houthis capitulated due to America's intense bombing campaign against the terror group, which has struck over 1,000 Houthi targets since it began back on March 15th.
The president told reporters in the Oval Office that the military campaign left the group reeling and that they told the U.S., quote, they don't want to fight anymore. Trump said, quote, they said, please don't bomb us anymore and we're not going to attack your ships. And I will accept their word, he said, and we are going to stop the bombing of the Houthis effective immediately.
They say they will not be blowing up ships anymore, end quote. Hmm. Following Trump's remarks, officials in Oman confirmed the breakthrough, saying they had mediated the ceasefire in recent days. People familiar with the matter told CNN that the U.S.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who's been leading nuclear negotiations with Iran, worked to broker the agreement with the Houthis through Oman over the past week in the hopes of building momentum for a new nuclear deal with the Iranian regime. According to the Omani foreign minister, the understanding between the U.S.
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Chapter 2: What are the implications of the ceasefire in the Red Sea?
As we've extensively covered here on the PDB, since Hamas launched its terror attacks on Israel back on the 7th of October in 2023, the Houthis have carried out at least 145 attacks on commercial vessels and 174 attacks on US military ships in the Red Sea and Suez Canal.
Their attacks have rattled global trade, driving up shipping costs and disrupting critical supply chains across the world Some 70% of global trade traffic is now diverting around South Africa to avoid Houthi attacks near the Suez Canal So a halt to hostilities by the Houthis would bring welcome relief to global trade. But is the danger really gone?
It's worth noting that the response from the Houthis to Trump's announcement was, well, somewhat contradictory. A spokesman for the political wing of the Houthis claimed they had not conceded defeat and made no concessions to the U.S., instead saying America had retreated after realizing, quote, it is in a losing battle.
Separately, the head of the Houthis Supreme Revolutionary Committee simply said the Houthis would be evaluating the Trump administration's halt of, quote, aggression against the terror group. Critically, Trump's remarks and the statement from Oman made no mention of the Houthis' relentless attacks on Israel and whether they agreed to stop those provocations as well.
But the head of the Houthi's Supreme Political Council later said their attacks against Israel would continue. He reportedly said, "...to all Zionists from now on, stay in shelters or leave to your countries immediately, as your failed government will not be able to protect you after today." That's not exactly the rhetoric of a group that plans to lay down their arms.
As we've been closely tracking this week, Israel mounted a wave of retaliatory strikes against the Houthis on Monday and Tuesday after a Houthi missile attack on Sunday, which punched through Israeli air defenses and detonated inside Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport's perimeter and injured several people.
On Tuesday, Israel struck key infrastructure used in Houthi tunnel construction and weapons smuggling, including Sana'a International Airport in Yemen's capital. Following the strikes, Houthi officials promised more attacks, saying they would, quote, meet escalation with escalation. So, is the US leaving Israel to fight the Houthis on their own?
At this time, it remains unclear, but according to our report from the Jerusalem Post, Israeli leaders were blindsided by Trump's announcement, which was not officially communicated beforehand.
Separately, we should also note that it's unclear if Britain, which has participated in attacks on the Houthis alongside the US, has also approved the tentative ceasefire agreement, or if they were left in the dark, much like Israel. And I think we've also learned just how many times one person can say hooties in an article. All right.
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Chapter 3: How did India respond to the attacks in Kashmir?
Nonetheless, the verbal order was issued shortly thereafter. According to internal Pentagon records reviewed by Reuters and multiple sources familiar with the situation, the move triggered a wave of confusion across Kiev, Warsaw, and Washington. Frantic calls from European and Ukrainian officials began on the 2nd of February, demanding clarification.
Inside the White House, Pentagon, and State Department, senior officials reportedly scrambled to determine whether the disruption signaled a broader policy shift or a unilateral misstep. By the time flights resumed on the 5th of February, well, the damage was done.
The White House told Reuters that Hegseth was executing what it described as a standing informal directive to reevaluate Ukraine assistance. But the administration has not explained why the order was issued without informing key departments or why it was quickly reversed.
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt downplayed the confusion, stating, quote, The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office. Transcom initially estimated the cancellations cost the Pentagon over $2 million. That figure was later revised down to $1.6 million after one of the 11 flights incurred no charge.
The brief halt exposed deeper fractures inside the administration's national security ranks, where decisions with global implications were made absent interagency coordination. Then-National Security Advisor Mike Waltz is said to have personally intervened to reverse the halt once its scope became clear. Ukrainian officials described the White House response as vague and at times dismissive.
One told Reuters the miscommunication was waved off as, quote, internal politics. Behind the scenes, several of Hegseth's advisers aligned with the America First foreign policy movement were quietly drafting proposals to scale back U.S. support for Ukraine and redirect focus toward countering China.
On 15th of April, though, several of those aides were escorted from the Pentagon after being accused of unauthorized disclosure of classified information. The February freeze was followed weeks later by a formal announcement on the 4th of March when the White House declared an official pause in military aid to Ukraine. Are you confused yet?
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Chapter 4: What were the reactions from Pakistan regarding India's strikes?
Chapter 5: What surprise move did Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth make?
halted weapons shipments already authorized by Congress during the final months of the Biden administration The flights, loaded with artillery shells and other munitions, had been scheduled to depart from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware and then Air Base in Qatar, with final routing through a logistics hub in Poland
The freeze followed a 30 January Oval Office meeting where Hegseth, reportedly encouraged by anti-interventionist aides, floated a draft memo urging a pause in aid to gain leverage with Moscow Three sources familiar with the meeting said Trump declined to issue any formal directive halting aid and was unaware of the SecDef's subsequent action
Nonetheless, the verbal order was issued shortly thereafter. According to internal Pentagon records reviewed by Reuters and multiple sources familiar with the situation, the move triggered a wave of confusion across Kiev, Warsaw, and Washington. Frantic calls from European and Ukrainian officials began on the 2nd of February, demanding clarification.
Inside the White House, Pentagon, and State Department, senior officials reportedly scrambled to determine whether the disruption signaled a broader policy shift or a unilateral misstep. By the time flights resumed on the 5th of February, well, the damage was done.
The White House told Reuters that Hegseth was executing what it described as a standing informal directive to reevaluate Ukraine assistance. But the administration has not explained why the order was issued without informing key departments or why it was quickly reversed.
White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt downplayed the confusion, stating, quote, The bottom line is the war is much closer to an end today than it was when President Trump took office. Transcom initially estimated the cancellations cost the Pentagon over $2 million. That figure was later revised down to $1.6 million after one of the 11 flights incurred no charge.
The brief halt exposed deeper fractures inside the administration's national security ranks, where decisions with global implications were made absent interagency coordination. Then-National Security Advisor Mike Waltz is said to have personally intervened to reverse the halt once its scope became clear. Ukrainian officials described the White House response as vague and at times dismissive.
One told Reuters the miscommunication was waved off as, quote, internal politics. Behind the scenes, several of Hegseth's advisers aligned with the America First foreign policy movement were quietly drafting proposals to scale back U.S. support for Ukraine and redirect focus toward countering China.
On 15th of April, though, several of those aides were escorted from the Pentagon after being accused of unauthorized disclosure of classified information. The February freeze was followed weeks later by a formal announcement on the 4th of March when the White House declared an official pause in military aid to Ukraine. Are you confused yet?
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