Wertheimer Political Report, April 9, 2026
DEMOCRACY 21
The New York Times award-winning journalists Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman are co-authors of a book being published on June 23, 2026, entitled Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.”
A Times article published this week entitled, How Trump Took the U.S. to War with Iran, was drawn from reporting done for this book. The article is well worth reading and it is linked here. Enclosed below are excerpts from the article:
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The Israeli leader and his advisers laid out what they portrayed as near-certain victory: Iran’s missile program destroyed in weeks, the Strait of Hormuz kept open and minimal retaliation against American interests. Mossad, the Israeli intelligence agency, could help foment an uprising inside Iran to finish the job.
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The C.I.A. director used one word to describe the Israeli prime minister’s regime change scenarios: “farcical.” At that point, Mr. Rubio cut in. “In other words, it’s bullshit,” he said.
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The president then turned to General Caine. “General, what do you think?” General Caine replied: “Sir, this is, in my experience, standard operating procedure for the Israelis. They oversell, and their plans are not always well-developed. They know they need us, and that’s why they’re hard-selling.”
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Of everyone in Mr. Trump’s inner circle, Mr. Vance did the most to try to stop the march toward war. He had built his political career opposing precisely this kind of military adventurism, and he told colleagues that a regime-change war with Iran would be a disaster.
Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had serious concerns about the war and persistently flagged risks: weapons depletion, closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the difficulty of predicting Iran’s response. But he was so careful not to take a stand, repeating that it was not his role to tell the president what to do, that he could appear to some to argue all sides simultaneously. Mr. Trump, in turn, would often seem to hear only what he wanted to hear.
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The president’s confidence that a conflict with Iran would be brief and decisive was deep-rooted and largely impervious to contrary evidence.
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When advisers raised the possibility that Iran could shut down the Strait of Hormuz — a choke point for vast quantities of global oil and gas — Mr. Trump dismissed the possibility, assuming the regime would capitulate before it came to that.
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Mr. Trump’s decision to take the country to war was not driven by intelligence assessments or a strategic consensus among his advisers, which did not exist. It was driven by instinct — the same instinct his team had watched produce improbable results again and again.
TRUMPWATCH 2.0
Trump voter regret is clearly registering now
“As President Donald Trump’s poll numbers have hit new lows amid the Iran war, there’s now the firmest evidence yet of a long-anticipated dynamic: the regretful Trump voter.” – CNN
Courts likely to block Trump’s effort to curtail mail-in voting
“Three lawsuits challenge the executive order as overstepping presidential authority.” – Roll Call
Historians sue over Trump’s attempt to ignore Presidential Records Act
“The DOJ last week said that Trump ‘need not further comply’ with the act.” – ABC News
‘Trump Believes That the World Should Be Run by the Great Powers’
“Events over two days last month — Friday, March 6, and Saturday, March 7 — demonstrated President Trump’s willingness to sacrifice American interests in subservience to President Vladimir Putin of Russia.” – New York Times
Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green Responds to Former Ally Trump’s Profane Easter Morning Message – Marjorie Taylor Green on X (Twitter)
Supreme Court remade by Trump ushers in historic defeats for civil rights
“The court is the first since at least the ’50s to reject claims in a majority of cases involving women and minorities, an analysis conducted for The Post shows.” – Washington Post
Trump’s two-week delay is a start. But there’s a big obstacle to a lasting ceasefire.
“Although a temporary agreement was reached, the Iranian regime will likely be highly skeptical of any Trump promise.” – MS Now
U.S. Pushes Allies to Chase a New Terrorism Target: The Far Left
“The Trump administration aims to deploy counterterrorism tools against far-left groups, even as it has offered little evidence they present a dire threat.” – New York Times
Judge Halts Trump Effort Requiring Colleges To Show They Aren’t Considering Race In Admissions
“Trump ordered the data collection in August after he raised concerns that colleges and universities were using personal statements and other proxies to consider race.” – HuffPost
Pentagon turf war ramps up between Hegseth and Driscoll
“A simmering battle for influence between Pete Hegseth and the Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has reached new heights with the Defense secretary’s purge of senior Army officials last week.” – The Hill
MEANWHILE, ON CAPITOL HILL
Pam Bondi still on the hook for Epstein testimony, Oversight panel says. Trump’s former attorney general had been subpoenaed for an April 14 deposition that was never confirmed. – Politico
Trump’s Iran threats resonate even after ceasefire announcement. As they prepare to return to D.C., lawmakers grapple with Trump’s existential rhetoric on Iran. – Roll Call
Top GOP senators to meet with Trump on DHS funding. – The Hill
MONEY IN POLITICS, VOTING, ELECTION & OTHER RELATED INFO
A GOP-aligned group is using Klan imagery to target Black voters. Civil rights rhetoric and images of Barack Obama are also being employed to persuade Virginians during the nationwide battle for U.S. House control. – Washington Post
Wealthy Donors Are Hiding Political Money in Secretive Nonprofits. Using philanthropy for campaign donations is illegal. But an exception for some nonprofits has allowed Democratic billionaires like Bill Gates and Michael Bloomberg to remain anonymous when they want to play politics. – New York Times
How Democrats Are Embracing Dark Money. The left is creating new, obscure nonprofits to funnel hundreds of millions of dollars into politics and advocacy. – New York Times
Republicans Unveil a $342 Million Battle Plan to Keep the Senate. The main super PAC for Senate Republicans is focusing on eight states and plans to spend big money to defend G.O.P.-held seats in Alaska, Iowa and Ohio. – New York Times
