Timothy L. O'Brien, Columnist

Trump Got Schooled by Iran. He’ll Never Learn

April 9, 2026 at 9:00 AM UTC

Timothy L. O'Brien is senior executive editor of Bloomberg Opinion. A former editor and reporter for the New York Times, he is author of “TrumpNation: The Art of Being the Donald.”

The world’s most unpredictable executive-in-training.
Photograph: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

Educating Donald Trump has been an expensive and perilous proposition, for the US and the world.

His war with Iran has cost American taxpayers tens of billions of dollars since it was launched Feb. 28 and the tab seems well on its way to reaching at least $100 billion. American soldiers have died and thousands of Iranians have perished. More than 22 million people in the Middle East are estimated to live near reported military strikes. Oil and gas prices have soared. Inflation has been spurred and economic uncertainty looms.