Four thoughts on Trump's turn on Iran

The only way to know for certain where Donald Trump's Iran policy is going is to wait — for the president to throw in fully with the Israelis, for a new attempt at diplomacy with a battered Iranian regime, for a continuation of the United States' current position as spectator, cheerleader and secondary participant.

- Ross Douthat

But while we wait, here are four quick comments on the debate about the war:

1) There is nothing inherently surprising about Mr Trump's permitting and indirectly supporting Israel's war against Iran. Mr Trump generally took a hawkish line on Iran throughout his first term; he has never been a principled noninterventionist; his deal-making style has always involved the threat of force as a crucial bargaining chip; and the idea that you can accomplish a lot with a few sharp blows while avoiding regime change and nation building fits comfortably into his worldview.