India, May 17 -- Before the first strike he didn't explain to the American public why military force was justified.

There is a particular kind of political misery reserved for leaders who launch bold military campaigns without a clear picture of how they end. Examples that come to mind include Napoleon marching into Russia, British Prime Minister Anthony Eden seizing the Suez Canal, or US President George W. Bush landing on an aircraft carrier beneath a "Mission Accomplished" banner, while the war raged for another eight years. Donald Trump has now joined this unhappy fraternity, not because he struck Iran, but because he didn't understand what he was authorising at the time and cannot decide what to do now that he has.

The strikes them...