Speaking about conversations with White House officials and people close to Trump, Isenstadt says there's broad frustration over how Washington ended up here.
Aides openly admit this isn't what Trump campaigned on, isn't what they wanted to be doing, and isn't helping them politically.
With the midterms approaching, the White House reportedly wants to shift the conversation back to the economy, inflation, and domestic issues. But that's difficult when Iran dominates the headlines and oil prices keep driving the news cycle.
Isenstadt also says Trump has grown increasingly frustrated with Netanyahu. He claims Trump has privately warned the Israeli leader that he's taking military action too far and that Israel's international standing is suffering because of it.
Even so, he argues Netanyahu played a major role in convincing Trump to enter the war in the first place.
Perhaps the most revealing point is that Trump's own advisers, including JD Vance and Marco Rubio, reportedly warned him the campaign against Iran would be far more difficult than expected. Trump heard the arguments, but ultimately trusted his instincts instead.
Isenstadt's takeaway: don't mistake this pause for a change in strategy.
Inside the White House, the priority appears to be ending a war they never expected to be fighting in the first place.
@axiosalex
