White House aides say they're just pretending Trump's warning tweet to Russia never happened


President Trump was taking his response to the Syria chemical weapons attack seriously, focusing on the issue and meeting regularly with his national security team, so aides were shocked when he tweeted Wednesday morning that Russia needed to "get ready" for U.S. missiles to hit Syria, several officials told The Washington Post.
On Saturday, a suspected gas attack killed dozens of people in a rebel-held town outside Damascus, and after days of weighing his options carefully, Trump tweeted: "Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and 'smart!' You shouldn't be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!"
The tweet was "alarming" and "distracting," White House officials told the Post, and they decided the best thing to do was ignore his message and pretend he never tweeted it, instead working with the Pentagon to come up with Syria options for Trump. Trump has been acting on impulse for the last several weeks, the officials told the Post, and that includes telling aides last month he wanted all U.S. troops out of Syria within 48 hours — an impossible task. For more on how aides are working to talk Trump out of various actions lately, visit The Washington Post.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Trump crypto token launch earns family billions
Speed Read The World Liberty Financial token is now the Trump family's 'most valuable asset'
-
RFK Jr. names new CDC head as staff revolt
Speed Read Kennedy installed his deputy, Jim O'Neill, as acting CDC director
-
DC prosecutors lose bid to indict sandwich thrower
Speed Read Prosecutors sought to charge Sean Dunn with assaulting a federal officer
-
White House fires new CDC head amid agency exodus
Speed Read CDC Director Susan Monarez was ousted after butting heads with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over vaccines
-
DOGE put Social Security data at risk, official says
Speed Read DOGE workers made the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans vulnerable to identity theft
-
Court rejects Trump suit against Maryland US judges
Speed Read Judge Thomas Cullen, a Trump appointee, said the executive branch had no authority to sue the judges
-
Trump expands National Guard role in policing
Speed Read The president wants the Guard to take on a larger role in domestic law enforcement
-
Trump says he's firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
Speed Read The move is likely part of Trump's push to get the central bank to cut interest rates