March 19, 2026 | The Wall Street Journal
Will Trump Finish the Job in Iran?
The Islamic Republic has been severely degraded, but it will continue to pose a threat to the Gulf.
March 19, 2026 | The Wall Street Journal
Will Trump Finish the Job in Iran?
The Islamic Republic has been severely degraded, but it will continue to pose a threat to the Gulf.
Excerpt
Donald Trump may find a kindred spirit in Lyndon Johnson. In the 1968 Tet Offensive, U.S. forces crushed the Viet Cong, dealing a near-fatal blow to the communist insurgency. But the battlefield victory didn’t translate into a political one. Shocked by the initial assault, the press and the intellectual commentariat saw only official dishonesty and defeat. As the first phase of his most consequential military triumph ended, Johnson decided not to seek re-election and de-escalated in an effort to secure peace. Mr. Trump risks the same predicament.
The military campaign against Iran is probably weeks from achieving what was initially envisioned. The Pentagon’s proposed calendar might match neither Mr. Trump’s temperament—which at times seems guided by volatile financial markets—nor Iranian ingenuity in hiding and husbanding the country’s remaining assets.
Mr. Gerecht is a resident scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Mr. Takeyh is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.