Tuesday at least brought some light relief in the form of St Patrick’s Day. Trump told the visiting Irish Taoiseach Micheal Martin that he hoped to visit his golf course there this year. But he also used the occasion to slam allies for failing to help reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Later that day, Joe Kent resigned as director of the National Counterterrorism Center, suggesting the administration had lied about Iran posing an imminent threat.

On Wednesday, the president travelled to Dover Air Force Base for the “dignified transfer” of six U.S. service members who died in a plane crash while supporting the war against Iran. A sobering moment for a president who promised to end foreign wars.

At the same time, Tulsi Gabbard, his director of National Intelligence, was on the Hill tying herself up in knots about whether Iran had posed an imminent threat and whether it was her job to assess that.

A day later, Trump hosted Japan’s Iron Lady at the White House. Again, the meeting brought awkward questions about the war, including why Trump had not warned allies about the planned strikes. “Who knows better about surprise than Japan?” he said, sitting next to Sanae Takaichi. “Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?”

So what did our strategists make of it?

John Zogby: Grade F

Three weeks into the U.S.-Israel war on Iran, President Donald Trump’s overall approval rating has dropped to 44%, 3 points lower than his numbers in February. His disapproval rating is now 54%, up from 50%. This is according to a new poll by John Zogby Strategies of 1,000 likely voters nationwide conducted this past Wednesday and Thursday.

Instead of a bump from leading his nation into a war, the new Zogby Poll shows that only 43% support the president’s actions (a decline of 2 points from the day before the war) while 52% oppose (up from 46%). Majorities of independent, black, and Hispanic voters oppose the war.

Fifty-two percent expect their personal finances to get worse because of Trump’s action, while only 39% expect things to get better. And only 36% say they are proud that Trump is president while 48% are ashamed.

Opinion numbers reflect trendlines. Inflation continues to trickle up and, while Trump had been lobbying the Fed for cuts in interest rates, the board kept rates as they were and said it doubted there would be any cuts this year because of the specter of more inflation — much of it war and tariff related. At the same time, members of the Fed observed that they have no clarity on whether the country is headed for recession or inflation, not ruling out either.

What is certain is that gas at the pump is now 90 cents higher per gallon. There was no job creation in the private sector, no growth in the labor force, and there are serious doubts that the U.S. economy is strong enough to withstand the Iran war. The president has been lobbying NATO to the point of mockery in an effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but the united European response has been that this is your war, not ours.

The government shutdown, under Trump’s watch, is causing disastrous lines at U.S. airports. The U.S. debt has reached $39 trillion this week. NBC News reports that contractors were told to “pay Corey Lewandowski, premier Trump fixer and close buddy of former Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. And through it all, the president found time to insult the Prime Minister of Japan. Not a good look or good week.

Jed Babbin: Grade A minus

We’re on the cusp of the fourth week of the Iran war and the fifth week of the Democrats’ refusal to fund DHS. NATO isn’t supporting Trump’s Iran conflict and the administration is asking Congress for $200 billion more to fund the war.

Oil prices for Brent Crude (of which we buy nearly zero barrels) have gone up to about $105 per barrel. The Strait of Hormuz has been closed by Iran and that price is going to go higher if it isn’t reopened. The United States is essentially energy independent, but Europe and Asia, especially China, sure aren’t.

NATO — purportedly in response to Trump’s demands that Denmark give us Greenland — has been unanimous in its non-support of the Iran war, and Trump has indicated that this may be where we part company with NATO. That would be very unwise, but it could be coming. Trump’s rudeness with NATO nations is apparently backfiring. But that’s not what it’s all about. The press is fervently anti-Trump in those nations, and it’s only indicative of what the governments feel.

Asking Congress for another $200 billion for the war isn’t a sure thing, given the Democrats’ undying hatred for Trump and those Republican squishes (such as Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who demands congressional control over war regardless of what the Constitution says) who don’t want to be caught supporting Trump.

The longer the Dems refuse to fund DHS, the more calls supervisors will receive from employees calling in “sick.” Those people — TSA airport security, Coast Guard protecting the coasts from terrorists and drug smugglers, and much more — are working without pay. Shame on the Dems for keeping them out in the cold.

John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Survey and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His latest book, Beyond the Horse Race: How to Read Polls and Why We Should, was just released. His podcast with his son, managing partner, and pollster Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Follow him on X @ZogbyStrategies.

Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on X @jedbabbin.

Trump coin will be ‘as large as possible’

Trump’s Commission of Fine Arts approved a commemorative coin for the U.S.’ 250th birthday. And the members of the handpicked panel know how to keep their patron happy. The coin will feature the president’s face.

“I motion to approve this as presented, and with the strong encouragement that you make it as large as possible, all the way to three inches in diameter,” James McCrery, the president’s vice chair, said just before the design was approved.

The new power play

Viewers of Anderson Cooper’s CNN show AC360 noticed a new look yesterday. Out went tiny clip-on microphones, replaced by giant radio-style tabletop mics. And rather than spread around the desk, the guests and host were closely packed.

Media commentators were quick to point out that it apes a podcast set. In an age when the likes of Joe Rogan get bigger audiences than a lot of conventional network news, everyone wants to look like a podcaster, it seems.

“Giant mics now convey more authority than fancy sets,” is how Ben Smith, editor in chief of Semafor, put it.

Podcast host Emily Jashinsky pointed out that Cooper and one of his guests were not wearing jackets. Ties seemed optional.

“People have started to swipe by clips that look like cable because they don’t expect to trust it as much,” she posted. “The mics are meant to signal something different and new, but it can’t just be aesthetic if they want it to work.”

Lunchtime reading

The homicide upending French politics: “On the evening of February 12, members of a French anti-fascist group allegedly pummeled a 23-year-old neo-Nazi activist named Quentin Deranque. The attack, filmed in Lyon, left Deranque unconscious; two days later, he died from severe brain trauma.” Will it propel the far-right to power?

The war in Iran will last at least a few more weeks: Our Tom Rogan says more needs to be done in destroying Tehran’s armed forces and nuclear ambitions. Otherwise, the reemergence of Iran’s major threats will only be slightly delayed following any peace agreement.

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