Trump only listens to a few key officials on whether to attack Iran
NBC reported that President Trump often accepts suggestions from all sides of the White House’s external allies, but only listens to a few core officials on whether the United States should attack Iran, including Vice President JD Vance, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Secretary of State and Acting National Security Advisor Marco Rubio.
Senior officials revealed that Trump would also listen to the opinions of Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff on Middle East-related affairs. Defense officials and senior officials said that just as Trump was considering whether the United States should directly participate in the Israeli-Iran conflict, National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who opposed the United States attacking Iran, was deliberately ignored by Trump. Trump no longer regularly consults with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during the decision-making process as before.
Former government and defense officials said Trump also sought advice from Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Dan Caine, US Central Command Commander Erik Kurilla and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
The biggest difference between Trump and every president since World War II in terms of foreign policy and military operations is that Trump does not hand over the careful planning to senior officials and then discuss it with the president through a well-structured system. Instead, Trump consults with government officials himself and listens to suggestions from foreign leaders and civilians. The discussions are informal and free-flowing, and government officials or senior military officials rarely have the opportunity to question Trump’s assumptions or express concerns about certain arrangements.
Trump’s announcement of lifting sanctions on Syria after meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman last month caught senior government officials off guard. Sources said Treasury officials were not warned in advance and were unprepared on the technical level.
