As missiles flew over Iran, Donald Trump partied like it was none of his business

President Donald Trump oversaw a major military operation against Iran, including missile strikes and the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, directly from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach. At the same time, the property was hosting a $1 million-per-plate charity gala for MAGA Inc. 

Per CNN, while gala-goers in gowns and tuxedos spun around the dancefloor, Trump made a brief appearance at the charity gala. He called out to the crowd, “Have a good time, everybody,” after a quick moment of jerking his arms to his anthem, “God Bless the USA.” He then declared, “I gotta go to work.”

Then he made his way to a makeshift Situation Room, set up on another part of the sprawling estate. Key figures like the CIA director, the secretary of state, and the secretary of defense arrived unnoticed by the cocktail-sipping crowd. The room had a map showing American assets and Iranian targets. Trump arrived and stepped into this high-stakes environment to direct the start of a sustained attack on Iran.

This might be a first. Running a planned military operation in the middle of a party

For most of the weekend, our only information about what was happening came from White House-provided photos and pre-taped videos shared by Trump. There was no live formal address or televised news conference. As such, there was no explanation of strategic goals or efforts to gain public support.

There was just the continuing national security unease of Trump’s consistent use of Mar-a-Lago for overseeing highly sensitive military operations. This time, the site had paying club members, partying, near the country’s most sensitive secrets. 

This random operational base has led to some pretty jarring scenes in the past. Early in his first term, guests posted photos of Trump huddling with then-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe over iceberg wedge salads after a North Korean missile launch. They could even listen to their discussions. Since then, Trump and his aides have implemented stricter rules.

Mar-a-Lago has now become the site for green-lighting a long list of highly classified operations. From taking out Iran’s top military commander, Qasem Soleimani, in his first term to capturing Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro just after New Year’s. 

Even if Mar-A-Lago is a strong structure and it has been secured further with bomb sniffing dogs and patrols, it is still a resort. It is not impenetrable, since a man got in with a shotgun and a fuel can recently.

It is just absolutely insane that Trump’s private property is being used to run such important operations. It is even more flabbergasting that it is done at the same time as a fundraiser that he went back to later in the night. 

However, as his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, stated, “President Trump still intends to stop by the fundraiser being held at Mar-a-Lago this evening for the Republican Party, which is more important than ever.” Take that, priorities!