President Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s energy plants and bridges if the Strait of Hormuz isn’t reopened.
Said Trump: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!”
He added: “Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”
G. Elliot Morris: “So we’ve got two layers of anti-Trump consolidation happening at once. YouGov’s data shows the Democratic left is coming home, and the CNN poll shows voters who dislike both parties — a swing group that has been decisive in recent elections — are breaking heavily toward Democrats for the first time in years. Neither group is necessarily enthusiastic about Democrats. But both are currently heavily voting against Republicans…”
“This could make for a big electoral win for Democrats in November, despite the division in the party and its overall nominally unpopular rating…”
“This is the pattern I’d expect in a midterm environment that favors the out-party. But with many Americans (including the vaunted ‘double-haters’) still viewing the Democrats as weak and ineffectual, a big electoral victory will not completely solve their deeper problems of identity and division.”
“An Air Force weapons officer whose fighter jet had been shot down in Iran was rescued by U.S. Special Operations forces in a risky Saturday night mission that took commandos deep into enemy territory,” the New York Times reports.
“The rescue came after a life-or-death race between U.S. and Iranian forces that stretched over two days to reach the injured airman, who evaded Iranian for more than 24 hours in mountainous territory with little more than a pistol.”
“As U.S. forces converged on the downed airman, a firefight erupted, a former senior military official briefed on the operation said. In the end, the United States extracted the officer in an operation that involved hundreds of special operations troops.”
After a phone call with President Trump, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said Iran will be facing “overwhelming military force” if they do not give in to U.S. demands.
Said Graham: “I am completely convinced that he will use overwhelming military force against the regime if they continue to impede the Strait of Hormuz and refuse a diplomatic solution to achieve our military objectives. If it’s not clear to Iran and others by now that President Trump means what he says then I don’t know when it will ever be.”
The White House unexpectedly cut off press access to President Trump at 11 a.m. ET Saturday, The Guardian reports.
Unlike most recent weekends, Trump has remained in Washington this weekend instead of traveling to Mar-a-Lago.
The Economist: “Beyond his loyal, red-capped base, Donald Trump has never been especially popular. Our tracker of polling data from YouGov shows that, across both his terms in office, he has spent only eight weeks with more Americans approving of his performance than disapproving. Even so, the latest numbers should worry both Mr Trump and Republicans heading into November’s midterm elections.”
“This week Mr Trump’s net approval hit -23 percentage points among all Americans and -19 among registered voters. That is worse than the president’s previous low of -21 in 2017, and roughly matches Joe Biden’s nadir after his disastrous debate performance in 2024, when many Americans concluded he was unfit for office.”
The Guardian: “U.S. federal agents have arrested the niece and grandniece of the late Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani after the Trump administration’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio, revoked their lawful permanent resident status.”
Bloomberg: “The next steps in the U.S. military campaign against Iran will commit nearly its entire inventory of stealthy JASSM-ER cruise missiles, drawing them from stockpiles devoted to other regions.”
“The order to pull the $1.5 million weapon from Pacific stockpiles was issued at the end of March… Missiles at US facilities elsewhere, including the continental US, will be moved to US Central Command bases or Fairford in the UK.”
President Trump warned Iran that “time is running out” before the U.S. rains “all hell” down on the country.
Said Trump, on Truth Social: “Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT. Time is running out – 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them. Glory be to GOD!”
“The White House quietly scrubbed footage of a bizarre Easter event after a presidential adviser compared Donald Trump to Jesus Christ—and he didn’t exactly look offended,” the Daily Beast reports.
“The now-deleted video, briefly posted Wednesday on the White House website, showed an East Room gathering that quickly veered from prayer into full-blown flattery, with Trump’s spiritual adviser Paula White, likening his legal and political battles to the crucifixion.”
“An Iran war that was already proving quite unpopular with the American people has entered a new, more problematic phase. That comes with the news that a US fighter jet was shot down over Iran… And that was followed by news that Iran hit a second US combat aircraft on Friday,” CNN reports.
“Neither of these incidents means Iran is suddenly on anything close to an equal footing militarily. And there have thus far been limited American casualties, including no known deaths in the last three weeks.”
“But in a conflict in which military dominance is the US’ chief advantage, this episode underscores the perils of asymmetric warfare, the costs of which the American public already isn’t buying.”
Washington Post: “Amazon is adding a fuel surcharge to its e-commerce deliveries. Mortgage rates have risen to their highest mark in seven months. And consumers may soon see higher prices for soda bottles and detergents.”
“These are all early indications of the Iran war’s impact on the U.S. economy. So far, the costs of the joint U.S.-Israeli military campaign have been modest, especially compared with the economic turmoil roiling Asia, and U.S. growth remains solid…”
“But like thunderclaps that herald an advancing storm, rising energy bills, interest rates and supply shortfalls may be warnings of worse to come.”
“The U.S. military was racing on Saturday to find an American airman who bailed out of a fighter jet that was shot down over Iran, as Israel launched a heavy wave of airstrikes on Tehran, shaking homes and leaving residents desperately seeking shelter,” the New York Times reports.
“One member of the two-person crew of the U.S. F-15E fighter jet was rescued after it was destroyed, according to U.S. officials. Iranian forces were also pursuing the missing American, Iranian officials said, speaking anonymously to discuss ongoing operations. The status of the airman was unknown as of midday Saturday.”
“Iranian operatives have been digging out underground missile bunkers and silos struck by American and Israeli bombs, returning them to operation hours after an attack, according to U.S. intelligence reports,” the New York Times reports.
“Iran has also retained a significant amount of its missiles and mobile launchers, the reports say.”
“President Trump’s pick to replace Pam Bondi will face the same conundrum that every attorney general he has hired and fired has confronted: It is hard to steer the Justice Department when the president is grabbing the wheel and stepping on the gas,” the New York Times reports.
“Mr. Trump is searching for a tougher version of Ms. Bondi but the fault lies not in the shirking weakness of those he has called upon to execute his will, but rather in the impossibility of his request — to bring criminal charges against political targets with little to no evidence or legal justification.”
“An Iranian drone attack last month on the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia did more extensive damage than previously disclosed, current and former American officials said, showing Iran’s ability to hit Washington’s assets in the kingdom,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
