The U.S. struck Iran’s coastal military infrastructure last night, the fourth major round of strikes since the U.S. ended its ceasefire on July 7. Several statements by President Trump yesterday suggest he now has grand ambitions that exceed even the bold goals he announced during the first phase of the war.

• Trump told Fox News he would be “taking over” the Strait of Hormuz and reimposing a blockade on Iranian ships.
• He also claimed in a Truth Social post that the U.S. will now charge a 20 percent toll on all ships that U.S. forces permit to cross.
• He also told the Hugh Hewitt Show that the U.S. has plans to “take out Pickaxe Mountain,” a nuclear site thus far untouched by significant American bombardment.

Are these goals realistic? Thus far, on about 10 occasions since March 1, U.S. forces have failed to protect ships from Iranian attacks.

• That the U.S. would even consider charging a toll on the Strait of Hormuz is also remarkable. The U.S. said Iran’s charging tolls would violate freedom of navigation. Now President Trump is proposing to do so, more than 5,000 miles away from U.S. sovereign territory.

This is worse than making America look hypocritical. Ensuring freedom of navigation worldwide has been a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy since World War II. It has been a key reason why American power, not to mention comparative global security, has increased so rapidly over the past 80 years. If America itself will compromise with this principle, then the postwar order is over and nations will grab whatever they can get.