Trump Calls Iran War an “Excursion” and Brings Up Pearl Harbor To Japan

Summary

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Bulwark Takes – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Trump Calls Iran War an “Excursion” and Brings Up Pearl Harbor To Japan
Date: March 20, 2026
Host: Will Saletan (of The Bulwark)
Special focus: Donald Trump’s Oval Office session with Japanese Prime Minister Sanai Takaichi

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Overview

This episode dissects the shockwaves from Donald Trump’s meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanai Takaichi at the White House. The focus: Trump’s unscripted, self-congratulatory, and utterly tactless comments about the ongoing U.S.-led war with Iran—what he bizarrely terms an “excursion”—and his astonishing decision to evoke Pearl Harbor while soliciting Japanese assistance in the conflict.
Host Will Saletan methodically breaks down the sequence of Trump’s remarks, analyzing their diplomatic, strategic, and political consequences, and highlighting the President’s contradictions, blunders, and startling lack of self-awareness.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Trump’s Framing of the Iran War as an “Excursion”

• Trump’s Self-Centric Narrative (01:49)
  • Trump repeatedly uses the first person—“I did it. Everything was great. The economy was great… but I said, I have to go do this war with Iran.”
  • Saletan notes: “He’s right out there saying, no, no, it’s me, it’s me. I decided to go to war with Iran.” (02:19)
• Casual Terminology
  • Trump refers to the conflict as “an excursion”:

    “I hate to make this excursion, but we're going to have to do it.” – Donald Trump (01:49)

  • Saletan’s reaction:

    “Who calls a war an excursion? … It’s a leisure term. Everybody uses it that way. So you, Mr. And Mrs. America, are paying twice the price you used to pay for gas for an excursion.” (03:17)

2. War Progress & The Iran Strait Dilemma

• Braggadocio vs. Reality
  • Trump claims near-total victory:

    “We've demolished. That country is close to demolished. The only thing is the strait. It's very hard. You could take two people and they could drop little bombs in the water and they're holding things up.” – Donald Trump (04:15)

  • Saletan highlights the contradiction—destroying Iran’s military, yet still being stymied by asymmetric tactics in the Strait of Hormuz:

    “If they have a couple of people and a bomb, they can just drop it in the straight…that means Iran actually has a big advantage.” (05:03)

3. Trump’s Mixed Messaging to Allies

• Request for Help…while Rejecting It
  • Trump on Japan’s potential assistance:

    “We don't need much. We don't need anything. I mean, honestly, we don't need anything from Japan or from anyone else, but I think it's appropriate that people step up.” – Donald Trump (07:42)

  • Saletan’s analysis:

    “He's so arrogant…he's saying like a child, I don't need anybody's help.” (07:50)

• Turning Away Later Offers
  • On UK support:

    “As far as I'm concerned, it's too late. You know, UK wants to send aircraft carriers now. And I said, I want the aircraft carriers before the war. I don't want them after the war is won.” – Donald Trump (08:48)

  • Saletan:

    “What a whiny little president.” (09:02)

4. Contradicting "America First" Doctrine

• Trump pivots and claims the war isn’t really for the U.S.:

  “Europe. Parts of Europe get a lot of their oil through the Strait. We get none. Practically, we're less than 1%. … We're defending the strait for everybody else.” – Donald Trump (09:22)

• Saletan points out the flip-flop, noting Trump sold the war as being in U.S. interests, now admits it’s “for the world.”

  “He’s contradicted himself…he didn’t even realize it.” (09:41)

5. Hyperbolic Attacks on Biden

• Trump falsely claims:

  “Biden gave $350 billion worth of cash and military equipment to Ukraine, and he didn’t rebuild anything.” (10:33)

• Saletan debunks him:

  “The $350 billion is a total lie…And Trump just sits there and says Biden did nothing. He is such a fantastic liar.” (10:48)

6. The Pearl Harbor Gaffe

• How it Happened:
  • Japanese reporter asks Trump why he didn’t consult allies before attacking Iran.
  • Trump responds:

    “One thing you don’t want to signal too much. … We went in very hard, and we didn’t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Okay, right. He’s asking me. And we had a surprise, and we did.” – Donald Trump (12:06)

• Reaction in the Room:
  • Saletan describes Prime Minister Takaichi’s expression:

    “She takes this sharp intake of breath. She can’t believe what she’s hearing. … Her eyes bug out as she hears it.” (12:29)

• Digging the Hole Deeper:
  • Not content with one gaffe, Trump keeps referencing “you, the Japanese,” blaming the current prime minister for Pearl Harbor.
  • Saletan:

    “This is a meeting where Trump is supposed to be asking Japan for help, and instead he brings up the worst insult, the most incendiary thing an American president could say to a Japanese prime minister. What an idiot.” (13:56)

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Notable Quotes

• On starting the Iran war:
  • “I saw what was happening in Iran and I said, I hate to make this excursion, but we're going to have to do it.” —Donald Trump (01:49)
• On demolishing Iran:
  • “We've demolished. That country is close to demolished. The only thing is the strait.” —Donald Trump (04:15)
• On U.S. not needing allies:
  • “We don't need anything from Japan or from anyone else, but I think it's appropriate that people step up.” —Donald Trump (07:42)
• On being too late for help:
  • “As far as I'm concerned, it's too late… I want the aircraft carriers before the war. I don't want them after the war is won.” —Donald Trump (08:48)
• The “Pearl Harbor” moment:
  • “Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?” —Donald Trump (12:06)
• Saletan’s take:
  • “What an idiot. He’s a moron. The President of the United States is an absolute moron.” —Will Saletan (14:13)

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Memorable Moments & Timestamps

• Trump brands war with Iran as “an excursion” (01:49–02:19)
• Strait of Hormuz explained – why Iran still has leverage (04:27–06:11)
• Trump’s muddled request to allies – asking for help, then rejecting it (07:24–09:02)
• Trump admits war is for others, not U.S. interests (09:22–09:41)
• False claim about Biden/Ukraine aid exposed (10:33–10:48)
• The shock of “Pearl Harbor” in front of Japanese PM (12:06–12:29)
• Description of the room’s awkward reaction (13:00–14:10)

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Tone and Language

Will Saletan’s tone is sharp, incredulous, and direct. He doesn’t hide his disdain for Trump’s handling of the situation, repeatedly calling out the contradictions, factual errors, and diplomatic gaffes. The language captures the combination of disbelief and dark humor that typifies The Bulwark’s political commentary.

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Takeaways

• Trump’s conflation of war with a “leisure” term (“excursion”) diminishes the seriousness of the conflict and the costs to Americans.
• His unwillingness to consult or coordinate with allies, followed by both requests for aid and simultaneous rejections, sows confusion and weakens U.S. partnerships.
• Trump’s major diplomatic blunder—invoking Pearl Harbor and seemingly blaming today’s Japan for WWII—alienates an essential ally at the very moment their cooperation is needed.
• Saletan’s final judgment: “If Japan and these other countries come to our rescue and bail us out and get us out of this, it won't be because of Trump. It'll be despite him.” (14:25)

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Transcript

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[Will Saletan]

21 terms and conditions apply. Hey, it's Will Salatan from the Bulwark. So if you were hosting the Japanese prime Minister at the White House, as Donald Trump was doing today, and you wanted Japan's help in this war, you started with Iran, which you didn't consult Japan or any other allies about, what is the dumbest thing to you could bring up? If you said Pearl harbor, you win. Yes, Donald Trump brought up Pearl harbor with the Japanese prime minister in the Oval Office today. But that was just the dumbest of a bunch of dumb things Trump said during this session at the White House. Let me take you through it. Here is the first thing. The first dumb thing Trump said it was that he decided on his own to. To basically take down the US Economy. Here's what he said.

[Donald Trump]

Everything was going great. The economy was great. Oil prices were very low. Gasoline was dropping to. I mean, we had $1.99, 85. We had great everything. And I saw what was happening in Iran and I said, I hate to make this excursion, but we're going to have to do it. And I actually thought the numbers would be worse. I thought that it would go up more than it did. But we're doing this excursion and when it's completed, we're going to have a much safer world.

[Will Saletan]

So the first thing to notice here is Trump keeps using the word I. I did it. Everything was great. The economy was great. Everything was cool. But I said, I have to go do this war with Iran. Now, you might remember the last time there was an Economic crisis under Trump. It was Covid, right? And he kept saying the, the China virus came in. It was the Chinese and their virus that wrecked our economy. I was doing great. This time he's right out there saying, no, no, it's me, it's me. I decided to go to war with Iran. And then the next thing he says here he tells you what the price of gas was before he started. He says it was A$85,1 99. And that's only in certain parts of the country. But he might not be aware the average gas price right now in the United States is, is about twice that. It's 388 as of today. And it's been going up. It's probably going to keep going up. So he's reminding everybody how much prices are up, that they've essentially doubled because of a decision that he made. And what was that decision? Was it a war that we absolutely had to fight? He keeps using the word. You heard it there twice. He said, it's an excursion. We just decided to go. I decided the economy was going great, but we needed to go on this excursion. I mean, who calls a war an excursion? An excursion is what people do from a cruise ship or you're on a vacation somewhere. Let's go, honey. Let's go on a little excursion. It's a, it's a leisure term. Everybody uses it that way. So you, Mr. And Mrs. America are paying twice the price you used to pay for gas for an excursion. The dumbest way I've ever heard to present a war. Okay, so we did all this for the excursion. So how is the excursion? That is the war. How's it going? Trump says it's going great. It's great. We are demolishing Iran. Watch.

[Donald Trump]

I mean, we've, we've demolished. That country is close to demolished. The only thing is the strait. It's very hard. You could take two people and they could drop little bombs in the water and they're holding things up.

[Will Saletan]

Demolishing. We're demolishing them. We're kicking ass. It's, it's great. We're killing them. We're great. We are great. The United States is terrific at destroying things. But there's just this one little problem which he brings up there. He says, you know, it's really annoying. We've, we've demolished all of their military. But, you know, if they have a couple of people and a bomb, they can just drop it in the straight. A mine. They can block all the shipping where all the Oil comes out for the rest of the world, right? So we have this contradiction that Trump and Pete Hegseth keep bragging that we've destroyed the Iranian military. Oh, it's all gone. All the planes are gone, the ships are gone. You know, they got nothing left. And yet we can't get the oil out because just a couple of people with a bomb can, can choke it off. And that means, that means if you're an ordinary person with an ordinary brain, that Iran actually has a big advantage. Not the advantage of beating us in the war, but. But it's so hard for us to get rid of every last thing they can do to close down the Strait of Hormuz and to choke off the oil. And here's the kicker. The way that Trump talks about it in that clip, you can see how surprised he is. He didn't see this coming. Like any person who was briefed on the history of Iran, the history of the Strait of Hormuz, right? His generals would have told him this. Trump either never understood it, never heard it, he cannot get it through his head that this was going to happen. The most obvious thing, it's not real reassuring if you're the Japanese Prime Minister and Trump has brought you in for help, which he has in this case, and you're seeing what an absolute idiot he is at planning for this war.

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[Will Saletan]

So then Trump gets to why we're here. We need minesweepers. They discussed it in this session. They discussed it in their meeting. Japan has minesweepers. And Trump is supposed to be asking the Prime Minister for that kind of help, but instead he says, we don't need anybody's help. Watch.

[Donald Trump]

We don't need much. We don't need anything. I mean, honestly, we don't need anything from Japan or from anyone else, but I think it's appropriate that people step up.

[Will Saletan]

So he says, we want other countries to step up, but then he says, we don't need anything from Japan or anyone else. What the hell? What the hell? He is so arrogant that even though he obviously has no. No clue what he's doing, and he's run into a problem that he can't solve, which is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, he's saying like a child, I don't need anybody's help. Remember this guy, Trump? He tariffed all these countries. He tariffed Japan and all the Europeans. He bragged about how much we could squeeze them, how much we could hurt them, and then he didn't even consult them about going into this war. He just did it on his own. And then he says, step up, you guys, since I didn't consult you, but now you need to step up and help us. And then he says, we don't need you. It's just a total mess of contradictions. And in fact, some countries have offered to help, and Trump says, they're too late. Watch this.

[Donald Trump]

As far as I'm concerned, it's too late. You know, UK wants to send aircraft carriers now. And I said, I want the aircraft carriers before the war. I don't want them after the war is won.

[Will Saletan]

It's too late. You're too late. What a whiny little president. What a whiny little president. And then in the course of complaining that all these countries aren't stepping up, he claims that they should do more. Because this whole war, it isn't really for us, for the United States, it's for them. Check it out.

[Donald Trump]

Europe. Parts of Europe get a lot of their oil through the Strait. We get none. Practically, we're less than 1%. We don't have to be any percent. We don't even. I think we do. It Just to be nice. But we think of it, we don't use the strait. We're defending the strait for everybody else.

[Will Saletan]

We don't need this oil, says Trump. We have our own oil in the United States. We're just doing it to be nice. He says we're defending the strait for everybody else. So wait a minute. When Trump started this war, he said it was for us. Remember? He said that Iran posed an imminent threat to us, the United States. That was his whole pitch to the MAGA base. Remember, America first. We're not going to fight other people's wars. We're only going to do what's in our interest. But now he's admitting it wasn't for us. We're doing it for the world. We're the world's policeman. So how's that going to go over with the MAGA base? Right? He's contradicted himself. He didn't even realize it. But before we get to the fun part, which is Pearl harbor, unbelievably, I got to show you one more thing that Trump said about Joe Biden during this session. Here it is.

[Donald Trump]

We have a lot of ammunition, but it was taken down by giving so much to Ukraine. They gave so much. You know, Biden gave $350 billion worth of cash and military equipment to Ukraine, and he didn't rebuild anything.

[Will Saletan]

So he says Biden gave $350 billion to Ukraine and that Biden then didn't do anything to rebuild or to build up the military. First of all, the $350 billion is a total lie, right? That's like three times the actual amount that we spent. Secondly, Joe Biden spent during the course of his presidency, we spent $3.5 trillion on the military, nearly a trillion dollars a year on the military. And Trump just sits there and says Biden did nothing. He is such a fantastic liar. I just had to bring that up. Okay, now let's get to the part about Pearl Harbor. It started with this question from a Japanese reporter.

[Donald Trump]

One question.

[Will Saletan]

Why didn't you tell US allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before attacking Iran? So we are very confused about with Japanese systems. And then here's how Trump answered that question from the reporter. Now, before I play this, I gotta flag one thing. I want you to watch the face of the Japanese prime minister. Her name is Sanai Takaichi, okay? She's sitting right next to Trump, and she knows she shouldn't react. But then Trump says something so awful that she can't help herself.

[Donald Trump]

One thing you don't want to signal too much. You know, when we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn't tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Okay, right. He's asking me. And we had a surprise, and we did.

[Will Saletan]

Did you catch that the first time? When Trump says, who knows better about surprise than Japan? And then she realizes what he's gonna say. You can see her take. She takes this sharp intake of breath. She can't believe what she's hearing. And you can see her eyes widen. Her eyes bug out as she hears it. And that's. That's before he says the totally incredible part. Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor? You. You, this prime minister in modern times, why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Like, you've inherited the guilt of Pearl harbor because you're Japanese. Okay? But Trump wasn't even finished. He keeps going. And then he says to her again, he just keeps digging in on this topic. You believe in surprise more than us. You. You, the Japanese again, blaming the current prime minister of Japan over this surprise attack. And you can see her eyes widen again. She can't believe that having made this incredible gaffe, he's digging in harder on this topic. So she's trying so hard not to react, but you notice that she's looking to her right. She's found somebody over there that she's supposed to be looking at to calm herself. And if, you know, when the camera backs up, I'll just tell you this. You can see there's two couches going on in the Oval Office. And on Trump's right, there's a couch that has J.D. vance and Marco Rubio, and I think it's Pete Hegseth. But really, if you're on the right, you don't want to be on a couch with J.D. vance, just as a general rule, okay? But on the other side, on the left side, which is to the right of the Japanese prime minister, she's looking over there, and that's her delegation. So she's found somebody over there that she can lock eyes with and try to not burst out in anger or laughter at this incredible gaffe from Trump. This is a meeting where Trump is supposed to be asking Japan for help, and instead he brings up the worst insult, the most incendiary thing an American president could say to a Japanese prime minister. What an idiot. He's a moron. The President of the United States is an absolute moron. He's gotten himself into a jam in Iran and he doesn't know how to get out. And he obviously needs help, but he's insulting the people who could help him in the worst way. And if we get out of this jam, if Japan and these other countries come to our rescue and bail us out and get us out of this, it won't be because of Trump. It'll be despite him. See you next time.

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