Good morning. The United States and Iran came to a last-minute cease-fire deal, after President Trump threatened to wipe out a “whole civilization” if Iran did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz. It’s a two-week agreement that Israel said did not extend to the fighting in Lebanon. World leaders are directing this war from behind closed doors. Today, we go inside the room where Benjamin Netanyahu helped convince Trump that he should start it.
Why we’re at warMy colleagues Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, who report on the White House, have uncovered new details about why, with little opposition from his closest aides, Trump attacked Iran. The pitch came from Israel — in the Situation Room. Netanyahu made an hourlong presentation to Trump and his senior advisers on Feb. 11, arguing that a joint U.S.-Israeli campaign could destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, force regime change and bring down the Islamic republic. Sounds good to me, the president said. The next morning, U.S. intelligence officials questioned that plan. Kill the ayatollah? Sure. Cripple Iran’s capacity to threaten its neighbors? Absolutely. But a popular uprising? A secular leader installed to govern the country? They found that “detached from reality.” The director of the C.I.A. called the scenario “farcical.” Trump, though, thought the campaign would be quick and decisive.
Previous victories filled him with confidence. He pointed to Iran’s muted response to the U.S. bombing of its nuclear facilities in June, and to the hasty seizure of the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January, an operation during which no American lives were lost. Tucker Carlson called the president to ask how he could be sure that everything would be OK in Iran. “Because it always is,” Trump replied. Trump’s decision was gut-driven, and driven by Trump’s gut alone. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was enthusiastic about striking Tehran, of course. But Trump’s more equivocal advisers — Secretary of State Marco Rubio; his chief of staff, Susie Wiles; and Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff — did not push back on Trump’s plan. (His director of national intelligence and Treasury secretary weren’t even part of the final discussion.) Vice President JD Vance told the president: You know I think this is a bad idea, but if you want to do it, I’ll support you. Read more of the inside story about how Trump decided to go to war with Iran. It’s reporting taken from a forthcoming book from Jonathan and Maggie, “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump.” More on the cease-fire
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What did the Artemis II astronauts see on the far side of the moon? They spoke across deep space to describe lunar hills, valleys and plains. Hurtling around the moon, they also saw the terminator line, which separates the moon’s sunlit and dark halves. It holds islands of light and valleys of black holes. “You’d fall straight to the center of the moon if you stepped in some of those,” said Victor Glover, the pilot. The crew described being awe-struck by an eclipse, when the sun slipped behind the moon, inducing a halo of light around the lunar rim. As they passed out of it, the astronauts likened the growing spot of light on the lunar horizon to a flame, and the wispy streams of its outer atmosphere to baby hair. After a while, words couldn’t suffice. “There’s no adjectives,” Reid Wiseman, the mission’s commander, said while looking out the window. “I’m going to need to invent new ones.”
Artificial intelligence is threatening to further inequality and the affordability crisis. Workers should be “in charge of the firms deciding how to use A.I.,” and help redistribute the wealth, Jennifer Harris writes. The effects of the war in Iran could shape summer vacations, with fewer flights and costlier gas, Bill Saporito and David Stubbs write. Here are columns by Thomas Friedman on Anthropic’s new A.I. model and Ross Douthat on the idealism of the space program. Morning readers: Save on the complete Times experience. Experience all of The Times, all in one subscription — all with this introductory offer. You’ll gain unlimited access to news and analysis, plus games, recipes, product reviews and more.
Renovations: Curators of Paris’s catacombs are trying to preserve and modernize the tunnels while maintaining their spooky atmosphere. Iced out: Skating rink operators are opting for synthetic surfaces as the planet warms, but some environmentalists say plastic is not the answer. Mental health: Idaho cut medical care for people with mental illness. A series of deaths has prompted lawmakers to reconsider. Your pick: The most-clicked link in The Morning yesterday was about a drug that is changing how men see themselves. Avant-garde guru: Linda Dresner introduced generations of well-to-do women to inventive fashion at her stores on Park Avenue and in suburban Detroit. She died at 88.
$18,870— That is the median net worth of Black households in New York State, according to a government plan cited by Mamdani. For white households it is $276,900.
N.F.L.: A year after the former Chicago Bears defensive tackle Steve McMichael died of complications of A.L.S., he was diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy. M.L.B.: The Chicago Cubs pitcher Cade Horton will have elbow surgery and miss the rest of the season. |
