When New Yorkers say yes to more housing, NYC’s mayor and I say: Let Them Build!

President Donald Trump's cascading failures in the Iran war — from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to the collapse of his regime-change fantasy — stem from a single fatal flaw: the president doesn't actually believe other people have agency, New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie argued Wednesday.

And that leaves him vulnerable.

"Over his decades on the public stage, we have seen little to no evidence that he believes in the existence of other minds," Bouie wrote, calling Trump "without question, the most solipsistic person ever to occupy the Oval Office."

The result, Bouie argued, is an administration that keeps getting blindsided by entirely predictable consequences of its own actions, from public outrage over DOGE, to backlash over the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, to Iran's decision to close the Strait of Hormuz and retaliate against Gulf state allies.

None of it, according to Bouie, was planned for.

Trump appears to have expected Iran to fold the same way Venezuela did earlier this year, a "replay fantasy" that has since crashed into a more complex reality, Bouie wrote. That has left him trapped in an "escalation spiral," in which the president has no choice but to keep doubling down when one approach fails.

Bouie pressed the question of why the White House fails to see what others could easily predict.

"This gets to the real problem. Trump is famously indifferent to the concerns of those around him," he wrote, slapping the president with the label of a "consummate narcissist."

Trump's flaw is an opportunity for opposition, Bouie added. He is "a weak and deeply unpopular president," who also happens to be "cursed with a kind of blindness," wrote Bouie. That means he cannot see that his "opposition is real," and won't see it when it acts, Bouie concluded.

The Trump administration has initiated deportation proceedings against 34 former military members over the past year and arrested 125 others for immigration violations, representing a dramatic reversal of previous policies that shielded service members and their families from enforcement action.

Federal data obtained by The New York Times reveals that immigration authorities also placed 248 relatives of former military members into deportation proceedings after the Trump administration rescinded Biden-era guidance giving service members preferential treatment in immigration enforcement decisions.

The shift marks a significant departure from longstanding practice. The Biden administration and prior administrations made military service members and their relatives lower priorities for detention and deportation, particularly when criminal convictions were involved.

The policy change directly contradicts military recruitment pledges. U.S. military recruiters continue promoting citizenship pathways for immigrant service members and promising temporary protection for their family members. Green-card holders joining the military have historically accessed expedited citizenship processes, and relatives can apply for temporary permission to remain in the country.

However, federal data shows the number of green-card holders applying for citizenship after military service declined significantly during Trump's first term. Currently, nearly 27,000 active duty immigrants and about 20,000 reserve and National Guard members serve in the military, with 115,000 immigrant veterans in the broader veteran population as of 2022.

Family members of service members now fear applying for temporary protection benefits, concerned that such applications will target them for deportation.

A prominent case illustrates the policy's impact. Sae Joon Park, a Purple Heart recipient who served in Panama in 1989, self-deported to South Korea in June despite living in the United States since childhood. After struggling with PTSD and drug addiction following his service, Park had fought earlier deportation orders and was allowed to remain in the country on the condition he avoid further legal troubles. An immigration officer nonetheless informed him in May 2025 that he faced deportation unless he left voluntarily.

Lawmakers have criticized the policy as both ineffective and disrespectful to service members.

"Donald Trump's way of thanking our veterans for their service is by targeting and deporting them and their families," said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

The Department of Homeland Security defended the policy, stating that no one should be exempt from immigration law consequences. The agency did not respond to questions about whether any detained veterans were ultimately deported.

"The U.S. is hamstrung by its ability to take on new debt, as our credit card is, in essence, beginning to be maxed out."

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