The President's Daily Brief - April 15th, 2024: President’s Daily Brief | Iran's Offensive, Global Outcry, & Israel's Dilemma

Episode Date: April 15, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: We take an in-depth look at Saturday’s historic attack by Iran against Israel, with over 300 drones and missiles reported to have been fired from Iranian soil into the Jewish state. The episode then turns to the global stage, examining the international community's reaction to Iran's unprecedented assault on Israel. We discuss the ripples on Capitol Hill as some Republican lawmakers call for more decisive action from the Biden administration in response to the attacks. In today's Back of the Brief, we tackle the crucial question, “what comes next?” In light of the White House's stance against aiding Israel in offensive operations, we analyze the alternatives available to the Jewish state. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. Email: [e-mail]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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It's Monday, 15 April. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. We'll start things off with an in-depth look at Saturday's historic attack by Iran against the state of Israel, which, according to estimates, saw over 300 drones and missiles fired into the heart of the Jewish state from Iranian soil. Later in this show, the Iranian regime's attack on Israel has drawn widespread condemnation

from the international community. We'll examine how world powers are responding. Plus, we'll take a look at how lawmakers on Capitol Hill are reacting with some Republicans demanding more action from the Biden administration and some Republicans blaming the Biden administration for the Iranians attack. And in today's back of the brief, we'll ask the all-important question, what comes next? With the White House declaring that it will not assist Israel in any offensive operations,

I'll explain what options the Israeli War Cabinet may be considering. But first, today's PDB spotlight. So we've obviously got a lot to talk about today, and that makes me the winner of the Daily PDB Statement of the Obvious. I wanted to start by examining the nature of Iran's attack itself and how it played out. Initial reports had the total number of drones fired at around 100, but all told, Iran launched nearly 200 drones, and more than 100 missiles at Israel. Let's begin by understanding the significance and magnitude of this

assault. Notably, it's the largest drone attack ever recorded. Moreover, it marks the first instance of ballistic missiles targeting Israel since the 1991 Gulf War. But arguably, most importantly, this represents the first direct strike by Iran on Israeli territory, culminating almost four decades of rising tensions between the two countries. Up to now, that's been played out indirectly through Iran's various proxies. In short, Iran launched three drone swarms at Israel. The attack included 185 Shahed 138 drones. These are the relatively slow-moving long-range drones that are most notable for their use by Russia in Ukraine. Iran also used more than 100 ballistic missiles and dozens of cruise missiles, the difference between the two essentially being trajectory and speed.

The attack was launched from 11 sites across Iran and was spaced out over the course of three hours. Now, the cruise missiles were launched to coincide with the final wave of drones. It's believed that the intended targets included the Golan Heights and Nevitum Air Base in southern Israel, from which Iran claims Israel launched its able first air strike on its consulate in Damascus. According to IDF sources, Israeli air defenses managed to intercept roughly 99% of the total projectiles that were fired. That's a pretty good batting average. Now, it's worth taking a moment here to look at Israel's air defense, which usually brings to mind the Iron Dome system. However, the Iron Dome is largely designed to intercept short-range rockets and artillery shells,

the type of weapons used by Hamas in the south and Hezbollah in the north. In reality, the Iron Dome is only one system in a larger multi-tiered network. In addition to the Iron Dome, Israel utilized a system called David's Sling last night, which is designed to deal with medium-to-long-range missiles and rockets. It can intercept threats from between 25 to 200 miles away. Then there's the Aero system, which is designed to defend Israel against medium-to-long-range missiles at high altitudes. There are several variants of this system, each designed to. address different incoming threats. On top of the ground-based defense systems, dozens of Israeli and

U.S. Air Force fighter jets, as well as allied assets, were scrambled to intercept the threats. Now, all these systems were put to the test on Saturday night, and they appear to have passed with flying colors. A small number of ballistic missiles did manage to penetrate Israel's air defenses landing near their targets. So far, a total of 12 casualties have been reported, mostly better and residents of the Arab majority city of Omaha Farm, as well as minor injuries at Nevitum Air Base. But even then, most of the casualties were reportedly caused by falling debris, not the missiles themselves. All right, coming up next, a global outcry in the wake of Iran's assault on Israel. We'll examine the international response to this unprecedented attack and the simultaneous calls for

de-escalation. Then, we'll turn our attention to Washington. where some Republican lawmakers are calling for the Biden administration to step up their efforts to confront the Iranian regime. I'll be right back. Welcome back. World leaders began reacting to Iran's attack on Israel almost immediately. The attack drew near universal condemnation, at least from the West. We'll start with U.N. Secretary General Antonio Gutierrez, no friend of Israel, since the start of the war in Gaza, who said in a statement, I strongly condemn the serious escalation represented by the large-scale attack

launched on Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran this evening. I call for an immediate cessation of these hostilities, end quote. The United Kingdom offered a similar condemnation with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak describing Iran's actions as reckless. Yeah, I suppose that launching over 300 missiles and drones

could be considered reckless. That's certainly one way to describe it. Sunak said, quote, Iran has once again demonstrated that it is intent on sowing chaos in its own backyard. He added that the U.K. will continue to stand up for Israel's security. The EU's top diplomat, Joseph Burrell, called Iran's attack unacceptable and a grave threat to regional security. And Ukraine's president Zelensky offered his own condemnation, drawing a parallel between Iran's attack and his nation's struggle. In a statement to X, Zelensky said, quote, Ukraine condemns Iran's attack on Israel using Shahed drones and missiles. We and Ukraine know very well the horror of similar attacks by Russia, which uses the same

Shahed drones and Russian missiles, the same tactics of mass airstrikes, end quote. Now, as you might expect, reactions in the Muslim world were more of a mixed bag. The Qatari foreign ministry declared that Israel was solely responsible for the ongoing escalation due to its, quote, continuous violations of the rights of the Palestinian people. It called on all parties to de-escalate and exercise maximum restraint. Now, the Qatari ministry failed to note that the Iranian proxy Hamas is the reason why there's a conflict now in Gaza, nor did they mention that Qatar plays host to many of the wealthy members of Hamas' leadership. Saudi Arabia also condemned Israel's treatment of the Palestinians,

but was more measured than their Qatari counterparts. The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs called for an immediate halt to the escalation between the two sides, the protection of civilians and restraint. Now, one reaction stands out more than any of the others, and that's the Kingdom of Jordan. Jordan's King Abdullah has yet to offer public comment on the attack, but what the nation did during the attack speaks volumes. Fighter jets of the Jordanian Air Force shot down dozens of Iranian drones crossing its airspace on their way to attack Israeli targets. In addition, Jordan opened its

airspace to U.S. and Israeli planes. According to Jordanian officials, they did so in self-defense and to defend their own sovereignty. Jordan has been performing a delicate balancing act for nearly three decades since it signed an agreement with Israel known as the Treaty of Peace. While its primary motive in this instance may well have been self-defense and protection of their own Serenity, their assistance was undoubtedly appreciated by their Israeli neighbors. In the U.S., lawmakers offered their support for Israel in the wake of Saturday's attack, with members of Congress from both parties calling for an immediate U.S. response. It's unclear at this stage exactly what type of response lawmakers may be demanding.

However, some Republicans are laying blame on President Biden for the attack, claiming the president's weakness played a role in encouraging Iran. In a post to X, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham said, quote, so much for the idea that President Biden telling bad guys don't is an actual or effective deterrent. Every time he says don't, they do. I hope the American people are closely following just how dangerous the world has become in the last three years, end quote. Graham is referencing what became a White House signature move. over the past couple of weeks, whenever asked about a possible Iranian retaliatory strike.

Biden and others in the administration seemed to think that it was catchy saying things like, when it comes to possible Iranian retaliation, my message to them is don't. Well, they did. To be fair, the current administration has spent the past three years focused on an appeasement approach to Iran. They staffed their Iran-focused positions in the White House and State Department and Pentagon with Iran apologists. So it's no wonder that the don't slogan failed to resonate with the mullahs and IRGC. Tennessee Senator Bill Haggerty struck a similar tone, saying that Biden should abandon his failed appeasement strategy immediately.

If Iran was hoping their attack would divide U.S. lawmakers, well, it didn't. There is now a loud bipartisan call to bring a new aid package to the floor of the House, potentially breaking months of deadlock. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise announced that Republicans will be taking up legislation this week to support Israel. Scalise said, quote, in light of Iran's unjustified attack on Israel, the House will move from its previously announced legislative schedule next week to instead consider legislation that supports our ally Israel and holds Iran and its terrorist proxies accountable, end quote. He added that the House of Representatives stands strongly with Israel and called for consequences for the attack. There are no details on what the aid package may include, or if the House plans on taking up the $95 billion supplemental bill that was passed in the Senate back in February.

Speaking on Fox News, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said that the details of that package are being put together, and that Republicans are looking at the options and all the supplemental issues. All right, coming up in the back of the brief, the White House has declared that it will not be assisting Israel if it chooses to retaliate against Iran's attack. I'll explain what comes next and what options the Israeli military may be considering. I'll be right back. Exema is unpredictable, but you can flare less with ebbglis, a once-month treatment for moderate to severe eczema. After an initial four-month or longer dosing phase, about four and ten people taking ebb glist achieved itch relief

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In today's back of the brief, I want to look at what comes next, or rather what might come next, meaning how Israel might retaliate for Saturday's attack. Now, according to a report in the New York Times, citing two Israeli officials in Jerusalem, members of Prime Minister Netanyahu's war cabinet had proposed an immediate retaliatory strike. Well, that idea was squashed after Netanyahu spoke by phone to President Biden on Saturday, in large part because the strikes caused relatively minor damage. It's no surprise here that the Biden administration is hoping to avoid escalation at all costs. During his phone call with Netanyahu, Biden touted the success of Israeli air defenses and stressed that Iran's failure to strike any of its intended targets,

had demonstrated Israel's military superiority. Biden was clearly trying to tell the Israeli prime minister that he had come out ahead in the exchange and as a result, well, there would be no need for retaliation. In short, Biden's message to Netanyahu is, quit while you're ahead. I'm not sure if Biden tried his don't catchphrase on Netanyahu. White House officials have also confirmed that although the decision on whether or not to retaliate was Israel's alone, Biden explicitly told Netanyahu that the United States would not participate in any Israeli counteroffensive against Iran. White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby reiterated Biden's position on Sunday. During an interview on NBC's meet the press, Kirby said, quote, the president's been very clear, we don't seek a war with Iran

and we're not looking for escalation here. He added that the U.S. will continue to help Israel defend itself and that the president would be at the forefront of finding a diplomatic solution. So, Of course, the implication is that if Israel chooses to respond, they'll have to go it alone. Now, there is the possibility that the Israeli War Cabinet will choose to draw a line under the current situation and refrain from a response. Iran clearly telegraphed their planned retaliatory strike, and given what we've seen to date, it does appear that they were essentially engaged in a bit of theatrics, albeit high-explosive theatrics. The Mullahs and the IRGC may well have been playing to the home crowd, meaning they needed to demonstrate strength to their population

to avoid losing face or losing popular support, while at the same time, clearly looking to avoid the type of retaliatory strike that could lead to an all-out war with Israel and the U.S. They've essentially said as much at this point, noting that they deem the matter concluded. Now, that's about as clear an off-ramp as Israel will likely get from the Iranian regime in this particular situation. However, while the retaliatory strike resulted in limited casualties and damage, it was nonetheless sizable and unprecedented. And from the IDF's perspective, given the existential threat that Iran poses and their continued stated desire to destroy Israel, it could, in fact, demand some form of response. Given the potential for the back and forth to spiral out of control,

the IDF from Israeli War Cabinet will be very deliberate in determining if there is to be a response, and if so, the targets involved. But this is not a clear case of both sides just stopping hostilities and retreating to their respective corners for peace to break out. The Iranian regime will continue supporting their proxies in their mutual objective of wiping Israel off the map. So Israel understands that if they decide not to respond, if they do draw a line under the current hostilities, well, the IRGC and their proxies will just be biding their time. Israel will remain in their sights. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief from Monday, 15 April.

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. Thank you.