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A a popular joke in the 1850s it was about a man who, after being sentenced for the murder of his parents, throws himself at the judge’s feet and begs for mercy for a poor orphan.
That story came to me recently when I read about a hearing challenging President Trump’s authority to build a new auditorium where the East Wing of the White House had stood until Trump abruptly demolished it last fall. The president was insisting for a while that any work “would not interfere with the current building,” then he demolished it so quickly that no one had time to intervene legally. In court this month, a Justice Department lawyer sided with the orphans of the paricide, pleading with the judge to halt construction and saying it was necessary for an unspecified reason. security issues-even if he accepted the suit brought by the conservatives. “It is not in the public interest,” the DOJ’s Yaakov Roth said“for this site to stop.”
Perhaps the management should have considered this before demolishing the busy building that was there before. (U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon has not ruled but has said he expects to rule by the end of this month.) Trump’s team has realized that moving quickly can prevent anyone from stepping in to stop them— “You can only do things” values. But the president still doesn’t understand why it might be unwise to do something, even if you do you can. His quick actions continue to generate conflicts that the administration then insists on requiring everyone to accept more use of executive power.
Trump’s war—sorry, “operation”– in Iran is a perfect example. President he did not ask Congress declare war, and he did not receive, or ask authorization to use military force. The administration briefed the “Gang of Eight” (leaders of the House, Senate, and intelligence committees of each agency from both parties) before the strike but, according to New York Times, he misled them about the scope of the attack. Trump did not work to build support for war with Iran among the American people, and he did not try to gather a coalition of allies other than Israel to participate.
Now that the operation has gotten complicated, however, Trump wants the very people he ignored—Congress, the American people, and allies—to bail him out. The administration has requested a staggering $200 billion to fund a war that the president also repeatedly claims is over, giving lawmakers the unpleasant choice between funding the mudslide or else walking away and leaving the mess behind. Administration officials have also called on citizens to volunteer to face high gas and energy prices in a war they do not support, whose goals the president cannot explain. And Trump has appealed to and angered allies who, after avoiding a war they didn’t want — and enduring years of contempt from Trump — are now unwilling to put their troops at risk to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
This logic of growth has also been seen in domestic affairs. After taking the wrong step of the Kennedy Center, Trump now finds himself insisting that hall closed for two yearsit is said in part because it has failed to book enough artists or sell enough tickets to stay open.
Or take Operation Metro Surge. At the end of 2025, Trump decided to send a team of immigration officials to Minnesota, to respond to cases of benefit fraud among residents of the Somali state. The Justice Department was already prosecuting, and it was unclear what exactly Department of Homeland Security officials would do. Once they arrived and started patrolling the neighborhoods, however, the residents protested; the administration responded by expanding its deployment. Trump threatened to invoke the Sedition Act and send in task forces, though he ultimately did not. By the time the administration withdrew, agents had arrested at least 3,000 people, but only 23 of them were Somali and none were linked to alleged fraud. according to Star Tribune. Meanwhile, two American citizens were shot and killed by federal agents.
The Minnesota operation was not just a flying technique; it was a political mistake. Administration firing Greg Bovinoa Customs and Border Protection officer who has been the front man for aggressive enforcement. Many agents were fired from Minnesota. Trump’s assessment of immigration, once his signature issue, turned hard against him.
This is ironic, because the original intention was a quick political victory. Trump had hoped to highlight benefit fraud to bolster his case for immigration enforcement and also because of his apparent hatred of Somalis. He seems to be of the same mind about the Iran operation, hoping for a quick victory like (apparently) he succeeded in Venezuela. Instead, he has ended up worse as a matter of his stated goals and political interests alike.
Following protocol might deny Trump the ability to play these sudden actions, or even prevent him from doing these things—but it would also help him avoid the mistakes that plague him. Trump doesn’t realize that while the laws may stop him, they also protect him. An attorney for the National Association for Historic Preservation, which opposes the theater, made the same argument even more bitterly during a hearing last week. Thaddeus Heuer noted that the administration could have consulted with the relevant authorities before the demolition but refused.
“They have forgotten the proverbial first law of the pit,” He said. “When you find yourself in one, stop digging.”
Related:
Here are four new stories from Atlantic:
Today’s news
- A The jury found Meta and YouTube indifferent for designing addictive features that harmed a young user, and ordered them to pay $3 million in damages. The ruling could pave the way for more lawsuits over the impact of social media on users’ mental health.
- The United States sent Iran a 15-point proposal to end the war, but Tehran refused and set out its own terms, including payment and recognition of its jurisdiction over the Strait of Hormuz.
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said that Democrats have sent Republicans proposal to reopen the Department of Homeland Securityincluding TSA staffing funding and proposed limits on ICE operations.
Evening Read
How AI Comes In New York Times
Written by Vauhini Vara
On Sunday, a writer named Becky Tuch posted an excerpt on X from the age of months New York Times “Modern Love” column. that he had given him pause. “I don’t want to falsely accuse authors” of using AI, he wrote. “But this reads EXACTLY like an AI slip.” That part—from the essay of a mother who lost custody of her son—explained the son’s feelings, at times, toward his mother: “Not hate, not anger.”
Among the 100-plus responses to Tuch’s post was one with an AI researcherTuhin Chakrabarty. He’d run a clip from “Modern Romance” through an AI recognition tool from startup Pangram Labs, which indicated it might have been produced by AI.
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Investigate. Henry Grabar on how America learn to love Barnes & Noble again.
Reflection. AI chatbots provide a relationship that is low effort and completely personal– and holes, Julie Beck writes.
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Rafaela Jinich contributed to this journal.
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