WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 21: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the National Governors Association Evening Dinner and Reception in the East Room of the White House on February 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trum... WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 21: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the National Governors Association Evening Dinner and Reception in the East Room of the White House on February 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. Trump is hosting the governors in Washington for the annual National Governors Association meetings. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images) MORE LESS

I’ve written a few posts now about a simple fact that is so apparent in news coverage that it is almost hiding in plain sight: the entire discussion of President Trump’s war with Iran right now is not how close he may be to achieving whatever his war aims might be. It’s the impact of the conflict on global energy prices and how this may impact the cost of gas in the U.S. and thus Trump’s electoral fortunes in November. We now have two closely reported articles which make clear that this wasn’t even a contingency that the White House planned for.

This passage is from a new CNN article which comes after a similar one in the Times ….

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