1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

“The war is going great. We are way ahead of the timetable. We have done more damage than we thought possible, even in the original six-week period.” And the chief fabulist added, “Any time I want it to end, it will end.” In reality Iran has rejected two messages from Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff calling for a ceasefire. Now we read that Iran is laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices are skyrocketing as oil production, and transport, is halted. These naval mines sound cheap, a few thousand dollars, but can sink a $2B US destroyer. And they can be deployed by small vessels, like fishing boats, at night. Iran struck oil storage facilities in Oman and Bahrain. While a few Iranian ships are traversing the strait, they are the only ones. But Trump told Newsweek that the reopening of the Hormuz Strait is “working out very well, and I think you are going to see that.” Trump has said prices will “drop very rapidly when this is over,” but oil industry analysts say reopening production could take at least a month. Even if Trump could declare the war over immediately, there is no indication anywhere that Iran would agree to an instant ceasefire. As many as 150 US troops have been wounded so far. Seven dead. And the Pentagon only released these figures after intense pressure from Congress. At least 17 US military sites and installations across the region, including air defense systems, have been struck. Iran has also struck diplomatic sites, including US embassies in Kuwait City, Kuwait, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the US consulate in Dubai. The Pentagon told members of Congress this week that the military used up $5.6B worth of munitions in the first two days of the war, a much higher burn rate than the administration had previously disclosed. They also said the first six days of the war had cost more than $11.3B, not including the buildup to war. The NYT reported that, according to a preliminary report by military investigators, the US is responsible for the February 28 strike on the girls elementary school that Iranian officials say killed at least 175 people, most of them children. The school building had been part of an adjacent Iranian military base years ago, and it appears the US used outdated information in the targeting. When asked about the possibility the US was responsible for the strike, Trump answered: “No. In my opinion and based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran…. We think it was done by Iran. Because they’re very inaccurate, as you know, with their munitions. They have no accuracy whatsoever. It was done by Iran.” On Monday, when a reporter noted that it was likely a Tomahawk missile that hit the school and asked if the US would accept responsibility, Trump responded “the Tomahawk…is sold and used by other countries,” and suggested that Iran “also has some Tomahawks.” A reporter asked why Trump said Iran had Tomahawks when only three other US allies and the US have them. But got the usual indignant non-response from the WH, that the president has a right to share his opinions. No. His opinions do not matter in this instance. Tuesday a reporter confronted Trump, saying: “A new report says that the military investigation has found that the United States struck the school in Iran. As commander-in-chief, do you take responsibility for that?” Trump answered: “I don’t know about it.” As the journalists wrote, “Striking a school full of children is sure to be recorded as one of the most devastating single military errors in recent decades.” Donald Trump has spent his life making messes for others to clean up. And now it’s the GOP’s turn.