The meeting marks a rare in-person briefing between Trump and the CENTCOM chief, who is known to be supportive of restarting the bombing campaign. Reporting from Axios earlier this month described CENTCOM leadership and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth as the “strongest backers” of restarting major strikes against Iran.

The Journal report said that Cooper and Trump were joined by Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine, and other cabinet members, but it didn’t specify what type of options Cooper presented. Other reports have said the US and Israel are planning a joint attack that would involve major strikes targeting Iranian leadership and energy infrastructure.

Earlier this week, the Journal reported that the US was moving a Patriot missile system to Israel as part of its preparations for another round of strikes against Iran. Cooper reportedly spoke with IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir on Monday to coordinate ahead of the new attacks.

All signs are pointing to another US-Israeli attack against Iran after the US midterm elections. For their part, Iranian leaders have warned that any further strikes against their country will lead to a significant escalation in Iranian retaliatory attacks across the region.

Enemies are replaced by new enemies, dictators give way to new dictators, and supposedly decisive victories become endless occupations. The beneficiaries are the military-industrial complex, the intelligence agencies and the politicians who confuse the exercise of power with the achievement of peace.

The American people deserve an answer to a simple question: What have we gained from this perpetual warfare? The answer is NOTHING in national security, and a great deal in lost lives, national debt, diminished liberty and shattered constitutional government.

The pattern is familiar. The government tells the public that a foreign adversary threatens our existence, that diplomacy has failed and that military action will be limited, necessary and successful. Then the bombs fall, the casualties mount and the mission changes. What began as a narrowly defined operation becomes a wider war, regime change, counterinsurgency or an open-ended commitment to demonstrate American domination. Then spying at home and federal borrowing are ratcheted up – all accompanied by the false message of spreading democracy and liberty.

It’s estimated that the US has used about 1,700 Patriot missile interceptors, or about two-thirds of its total stockpile, in Iran since it was launched on February 28, and the reported deployment to Israel comes as the US has been holding up a Patriot missile shipment to Ukraine.

The Journal report said that the US has also warned its Gulf Arab allies to prepare for a short but intense renewed bombing campaign against Iran, though Iranian officials have warned that they will significantly escalate retaliatory strikes across the region in the face of any renewed US or Israeli attacks, meaning the US will have little control on the timeline.

The reported warning to the Gulf states comes as senior Gulf Arab officials appear desperate to avoid a re-escalation of the war as they have been engaging with Iranian officials. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman visited Tehran on Monday, and the following day, Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Moscow.

In leaked audio obtained by Axios, Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for senate in Texas, spoke candidly about what he believes are the biggest issues hurting his campaign. The Iran war, which has dragged on for almost eight months now, has put Texans – and the rest of the nation – in an economic bind, one which President Donald Trump had promised to avoid.

Crude oil prices have once again risen above $100 a barrel. The national average for gasoline is hovering above $4. With Republicans nationwide being burdened by the stench of incumbency – regardless of whether or not the individual candidate is currently in office – a return-to-power seems all but imminent for the Democrats in the House of Representatives, and maybe even the Senate as well.

This is even true in “Trump Country.”

“While oil prices are temporarily high and will be falling dramatically in a short period of time … the United States oil and gas business is making hundreds of billions of dollars,” the president told supporters at a rally in Georgia.

TRUMP on HIGH GAS PRICES: We’re making money like we’ve never made before. They’ll say: President Trump is bragging about all the money they’re making while people are suffering at the pump. I don’t give a damn. We’re making a freaking fortune. pic.twitter.com/KZ2pYsTPyR

“Our country is making hundreds of billions of dollars because of what’s happening in the Middle East because they’re coming to Texas, and they’re coming to Oklahoma, and they’re coming to Louisiana, and they’re taking that oil. They’re making hundreds of billions of dollars; our country is, and on top of it we have Venezuela, and we have Greenland,” he added.

The 1951 San Francisco peace treaty formally ending the war between the Allies and Japan attempted to resolve postwar territorial disputes. In that treaty, Tokyo renounced its claim to the Kurils but also contended that the four southernmost islands were distinct from the Kuril chain and, therefore, were still part of Japan’s territory. Since the Soviet Union never signed the treaty at all, the Kuril issue remained unresolved.

The dispute has continued to be a volatile, emotional topic with populations in both countries. Russia calls the islands the “Southern Kurils” whereas Japan refers to the four islands as the “Northern Territories,” and any use of the “wrong” name in public can trigger a surprisingly intense response in either country. The topic appears to have greater salience, though, in Japan. Large demonstrations have occurred periodically in Japanese cities to protest Russia’s ongoing occupation. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi reiterated that his country “strongly protests” Putin’s visit. He added that the “Northern Territories are Japan’s inherent territory both historically and from the perspective of international law.”

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