All the President’s Wars — at Home and Abroad

From Tehran to the Supreme Court, a look at Trump’s relentless battles.

By Michelle CottleJamelle Bouie and David French

Produced by Derek Arthur

President Trump claims America is “winning bigger than ever before,” but his battles abroad and in American courtrooms drag on. This week on “The Opinions,” the national politics writer Michelle Cottle and the columnists Jamelle Bouie and David French discuss Trump’s efforts to build support for the war in Iran. And in domestic politics, the trio discuss why even conservative Supreme Court judges seem skeptical of the administration’s push to end birthright citizenship.

All the President’s Wars — at Home and Abroad

Below is a transcript of an episode of “The Opinions.” We recommend listening to it in its original form for the full effect. You can do so using the player above or on the NYTimes app, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.

The transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Michelle Cottle: We are now in month two of President Donald Trump’s war in Iran, and so this week we’re going to take a look at his speech to the American people on the conflict and what direction things seem to be going. And then, turning back to the home front, I want us to talk about the court battles over birthright citizenship, and the judicial branch’s attempts at dealing with this president.

So, lots to cover. Let’s get to it. As always, we are recording on Thursday morning. Who the heck knows where this is going to be by the time you hear us? But Trump arranged a prime time opportunity to reach out to the American people and convince us of the necessity and value of the war in Iran. After watching the speech on Wednesday, how successful would you say he was? Jamelle, you go first.

Jamelle Bouie: I would say not successful at all. I would say pretty low on the success-reaching. That’s a terrible sentence.

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Michelle Cottle writes about national politics for Opinion. She has covered Washington and politics since the Clinton administration. @mcottle

Jamelle Bouie became a New York Times Opinion columnist in 2019. Before that he was the chief political correspondent for Slate magazine. He is based in Charlottesville, Va.

David French is an Opinion columnist, writing about law, culture, religion and armed conflict. He is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom and a former constitutional litigator. His most recent book is “Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation.” You can follow him on Threads (@davidfrenchjag).

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