Welcome to Friday’s edition of Washington Secrets, where we are readying for the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner redux. It is meant, in part, to be a celebration of the First Amendment, so will anyone bring up the president’s attempt to subpoena New York Times reporters to find out their sources? In the meantime, we bring you our regular look at the White House week.It was another split-screen week for Donald Trump, mixing the pageantry and spectacle of a major sporting event with one of the most somber of presidential duties: receiving the caskets of fallen military personnel as they arrive back on American soil.On Sunday, the president handed the World Cup to Spain’s victorious soccer players after they overcame Argentina in the final in New Jersey. In typical style, he inserted himself into the Spanish celebrations and had to be nudged to the side as photographers snapped away. He returned to the White House as American forces continued hitting targets in Iran for the ninth consecutive night.
A day later, the extent of American casualties became clear. The Pentagon revealed that almost 100 service members had been wounded so far this month.On Tuesday, the president threatened an escalation, warning Iran that the U.S. would destroy an Iranian bridge or power plant at any time its forces attacked a ship in the Strait of Hormuz. The price of oil began rising in response, sending jitters through the president’s Republican Party.Trump flew to Dover Air Force Base on Wednesday to pay tribute to four young soldiers who had been killed in the conflict. Their deaths bring the total killed to 18.“All of them said very strongly, ‘We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon,’” he told reporters beforehand.Afterward, he flew to Georgia for a political rally, where he touted “Trump Accounts” and tax cuts ahead of the midterm elections while attacking Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA).The U.S. and Saudi Arabia signed a landmark civil nuclear deal that could eventually let Riyadh enrich uranium, much to the consternation of Israel. Trump quickly upended everything, however, by announcing on social media that Saudi Arabia would have to join the Abraham Accords, normalizing relations in Israel, for the deal to go into effect.Oil went past the $100 a barrel mark on Thursday as Iran-backed Houthis struck Saudi tankers in the Red Sea, opening a fresh front. Trump said he was considering a “massive attack… bigger than ever before.”In the meantime, the U.S. Trade Representative announced tariffs of 10% to 12.5% on 60 economies over forced-labor enforcement failures. They were introduced to replace Trump’s expiring global 10% tariff at midnight.So what did our two political strategies make of it all?John Zogby: Grade F
