The title of this editorial is in fact ironic rather than inquisitive. Evidence drawn from President Trump’s policies, statements, and contradictions ever since he came to power in January 2015, his subsequent attacks on friends and foes alike, his reckless escalation of conflicts and wars, his disregard for the US Constitution and Congress, and his refusal to engage with the American people, all point to an unprecedented pattern among American presidents. Analysts and observers agree that his intentions are unpredictable, noting that his positions can shift quickly, sometimes contradicting earlier ones. He boasts that he is immune to review or accountability. He is a president who has relinquished the national interest of his country and people to serve the Zionist lobby that brought him to the White House to serve Israel’s policies and submit to its whims.
These are not fleeting personal reflections, but deeply held convictions that have taken shape in an exchange which took place on 30 April 2026 between Judge Andrew Napolitano on his podcast Judging Freedom, and his guest Colonel Douglas McGregor who is a retired US Army colonel, combat veteran, and former senior advisor to the US Secretary of Defense. Following are excerpts of this interview which held the title: “Does Trump have any restraints?”
Judge Napolitano: What is the status of the American blockade about which the Secretary of Defense boasted under oath yesterday… that it is a worldwide blockade?
Col McGregor: “We end up in a confrontation with other powers… The Japanese, the Chinese, the Koreans have all sat down with [Iran], and worked out plans to bring their tankers in and out. The Iranians have accommodated the Indians [too]. We seem to be the ones that are the sticking point for the Gulf blockade… You know 70 per cent of our farmers say they can’t afford to buy fertiliser and cultivate their fields… The global south which is almost entirely dependent upon the fertiliser that comes out of the Gulf is in at least as bad if not worse shape… We’re going to have shortages on the shelves of our stores that sell food. That’s not the only thing; diesel, gasoline, jet fuel, fertiliser, all of these products, food, feed stocks, fuel, all of that is at risk right now. The world is facing a serious calamity… We’ve already had a 42 per cent spike over the last nine weeks in fuel, oil, gasoline. It’s only going to get worse from here. So, I don’t see how this particular attempt to harm Iran is going to do us any good.”
Regarding President Trump’s position right now, Col McGregor said: “He’s got a choice of maybe two or three options. Option one is that he stands up in front of the American people and say: ‘I’ve decided to suspend all military operations. This has produced a global crisis for millions and millions of people all over the world who are desperately dependent upon the resources of the Gulf. And I am not going to punish them because of our disputes with Iran. So I’m ending the conflict, I’m disengaging and we’ll look for mediaries to help us sort out our differences with Iran. Problem is obviously the Israeli lobby doesn’t like that, and as far as I can tell, they’re still in charge. And that means Mr Netanyahu is ultimately calling the shots.
“Secondly, we can just rely on this blockade… But how many ships have we got? How long can we do it? How problematic is it? It doesn’t make sense. It’s not a long-term proposition. And it could easily live to a wider and more dangerous confrontation with other powers.”
The third option according to Col McGregor is to launch another military strike against Iran that would lead to its surrender. However, Col McGregor argues: “I think the Iranians are prepared to accept as much damage as we want to inflict and they also, I think, probably have some new capabilities up their sleeves, and they will employ everything they have and do what they’ve promised which is to utterly eradicate all the remaining oil infrastructure in the Gulf which would be disastrous for the rest of the world because that means 10 years to recover from this.” Let me remind of the gravity of Iran’s previous threats to destroy seawater desalination plants in the Gulf States, which would mean the elimination of their vital freshwater resources.
Two days ago, the Iranian Foreign Minister travelled to St Petersburg, Russia, where he was ostentatiously received by President Putin who spent time with him and Foreign Minister Lavrov… The following day, a phone call took place between President Putin and President Trump… What do you think President Putin said to President Trump?
“I listened earlier to a live discussion involving President Putin with some members of the press and he described the fact that he had expressed his willingness to guarantee the security of Israel along with Iran to take control of whatever enriched uranium was there. He went through a series of measures all of which were designed to essentially de-escalate the tension and bring people back to the table. He did not convey the impression that his recommendations were either rejected or well received.”
[There is news of] a Putin-Netanyahu phone call. Now, does President Putin have leverage with Prime Minister Netanyahu?
“I’m sure he listened, and President Putin has tried very hard to cooperate with and accommodate Israel. He’s tried to do it without at the same time harming his relations with the numerous Islamic States and powers that have good relations with Russia. And I think President Putin said: ‘Look, if we come to an agreement with Iran, we become co-signatories; in other words, I’ll sign, President Xi will sign, other great powers will sign, and we’ll do everything we can to ensure your security.’… Now, what are the details of those agreements? I have no idea. The problem for President Putin is that Mr Netanyahu has something now that he’s never had before and probably will never get again, and that is complete control of the United States armed forces and the absolute allegiance and obedience of the President of the United States and the Congress to whatever he wants. He’s got to use that. It’s a use it or lose it proposition for Israel. Either they get us back in, use everything that we’ve got left, or they might as well throw in the towel because they’re beginning to understand at home that they can’t realise the Greater Israel Project. They cannot go on as they have, treating all of their neighbours and inhabitants of the region as animals, as subhumans.”
Suppose Trump says thank you very much to Mrs Adelson [Miriam Adelson, American Israeli billionaire who has served as one of Donald Trump’s largest financial backers] and her colleagues [Israeli lobby] and enters into a peace agreement with Iran.What will Israel do? What will Netanyahu do?
“There are Israelis that don’t agree with Netanyahu. And there are prominent Jewish figures in the United States and Europe that don’t agree with Mr Netanyahu. And I think if they were to have their way, were they elected or appointed, I suppose they could try to transform Israel into a normal country…in the sense where you cooperate and live with your neighbours, making whatever required adaptations in order to do that. But I think that’s unlikely, frankly for the reasons that I’ve already stated. So I don’t think we’re going to see that happen.”
Will the Gulf States leave the American empire?
“They already have. And you know this so-called imperial State system that we’ve created where we have all these States on the periphery of Eurasia, Japan, Korea, you can argue to some extent Thailand and certainly the Gulf States in the Persian Gulf region, Spain, Germany, Italy, all of this is going to go away.” I may also add Britain and France. “This is not because we failed miserably to protect the Gulf States. That was going to happen for reasons of technology over which we didn’t have much control and which we did not appreciate.”
Does President Trump recognise any restraints?
“Well, I don’t think so at this point. And why should he? I mean, frankly, he didn’t feel the compulsion to go to the American people and build support for his policy. I don’t remember him on a speaking tour all around the country trying to advocate that we should support war with Iran on behalf of Israel. I don’t remember him saying anything to the UN. He didn’t go to the Congress. He didn’t go to the American people.”
President Trump thus remains trapped in his own self-immersion, and I do not think he realises it. Rather, he is consumed by his belligerence and stubbornness, convinced that his policies are correct, and unable to imagine the humiliation of backing down from them. Instead, he justifies his actions by claiming he is achieving victory after victory.
Watani International
8 May 2026
