The Bombing Doctrine
Trump’s New Cabinet and the Escalation Against Iran
It’s been a while since I last wrote here — January, to be exact. Back then, the 2024 election was still fresh in everyone’s mind, and the idea of a second Trump administration felt like a question mark. Now, six months in, the question has been replaced by something else entirely: a doctrine. One shaped not by diplomats or generals, but by loyalty, aggression, and a dangerous clarity.
At the center of this new foreign policy axis are two figures — neither of whom would’ve been first picks in any traditional administration: Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Together, under Donald Trump’s direction, they’ve escalated what used to be a shadow war against Iran into a thinly veiled, undeclared campaign of bombing, sabotage, and maximum pressure.
Let’s walk through what’s happening — and what it means.
From Allies to Executors
In any other context, Rubio and Hegseth wouldn’t be sitting at the most powerful foreign policy desks in the country.
Rubio, once a Tea Party golden boy turned Senate foreign policy hawk, took years to earn Trump’s trust after being publicly humiliated in the 2016 primaries. His appointment as Secretary of State was sold as a bridge between neoconservative internationalists and MAGA realists. Instead, he’s governed like a Cold Warrior dropped into a proxy conflict with no Cold War guardrails.
Hegseth, meanwhile, is a former National Guard officer, Fox News regular, and veterans’ advocate. His path to the Pentagon began with a TV contract, not a command role. But to Trump, he’s loyal, aggressive, and unafraid to call enemies enemies.
This trio — Trump, Rubio, Hegseth — is not cautious. They are not incrementalists. They are not deterred by alliances or treaties. They are executing a pressure campaign designed to force Iran into either submission or self-destruction.
Bombs, Drones, and Silence
Since March, U.S. forces — often through “coalition” language or no official confirmation — have struck targets linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Hezbollah, and suspected nuclear infrastructure. Sources tell Online Chronicle that these actions are part of a broader doctrine greenlit in February, code-named Silent Falcon.
In that time, strikes have hit:
An IRGC command site in Deir ez-Zor, Syria
A suspected weapons shipment depot in western Iraq
A drone assembly facility outside Isfahan, Iran
And, according to leaked satellite analysis, two hardened uranium enrichment tunnels in central Iran — damaged by U.S.-provided Israeli munitions
None of these have been publicly claimed. But they’ve been unmistakable. One former CENTCOM officer I spoke to described it as “everything short of war, executed like war.”
Rubio’s State Department, meanwhile, is pressing Europe to stay quiet — or get onboard. France and Germany have raised concerns, but the UK and Israel remain closely aligned.
War Powers, or Just War?
This all raises an obvious question: Is any of this legal?
Under the War Powers Act, the President must notify Congress within 48 hours of introducing armed forces into hostilities. But there’s been no formal notification. Instead, the administration claims these are “pre-authorized self-defense operations” or “coalition actions.”
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) has already introduced a resolution demanding a classified briefing and vote on the operations. It’s unlikely to succeed in the current Congress, but it signals that some lawmakers are not comfortable watching a silent war unfold.
And there are signs the American public is tuning back in. Protests have emerged in college towns and cities like Chicago and Portland, echoing the anti-war energy of the 2000s — but without the draft to mobilize mass dissent.
Trump’s Foreign Policy Reboot
What we’re watching is not simply a return to Trump’s 2017–2021 policies. This is something more aggressive — and more organized.
Back then, Trump pulled out of the Iran Deal, sanctioned the regime heavily, and authorized the killing of Qassem Soleimani. But the broader framework still deferred to the Pentagon, the CIA, and advisors like McMaster or Mattis.
Now, those figures are gone. The guardrails are gone. And in their place is a triangle of loyalty and ideology: Trump, Rubio, Hegseth.
They are united by a belief that America doesn’t need permission to act, and that Iran — as a nuclear aspirant, a sponsor of terrorism, and a regional hegemon — must be stopped by any means necessary.
That belief now has teeth.
The Risk Ahead
Iran is not standing still. According to IAEA reports, its stockpile of highly enriched uranium has increased by 24% since April. Iranian-backed militias have attacked U.S. bases in Iraq and Syria five times in the past month. And on June 15, Tehran tested a new solid-fuel missile — one it claims can reach Tel Aviv and Riyadh.
There is no direct line from here to full-scale war. But there is a path. And we’re walking it.
Trump’s White House isn’t signaling caution. In fact, during a June rally in Ohio, the President said this:
“We’re not going to sit around and let bad people make bombs and threaten the world. Obama did that. Biden did that. I won’t.”
The crowd roared.
But while the rallygoers cheered, diplomats in Vienna walked out of the latest Iran nuclear talks. Tehran has vowed it won’t negotiate under “active bombardment.” And the world watches, waiting for the next flashpoint.
Final Thought
Six months ago, it was unclear what a second Trump term would do. Now we know.
Rubio and Hegseth have answered that question with missiles and doctrines — and very little explanation.
Whether this ends with a broken Iran, a new war, or something else entirely, one thing is certain: the bombing campaign is real. And it's not slowing down.
I’ll be following it closely.
— Jesus Arias