After dinner with military commanders, Trump hints at “calm before the storm”

Impact

Posing alongside military leaders before a dinner at the White House Thursday, President Donald Trump dropped cryptic hints to reporters that the photo op was the “calm before the storm.”

“You guys know what this represents?” Trump asked. “Maybe it’s the calm before the storm. We have the world’s great military people in this room. I will tell you that. And, uh, we’re gonna have a great evening. Thank you all for coming.”

When one reporter asked for clarification — was the storm Iran? ISIS? — the president simply replied, “You’ll find out.”

The unsubtle allusion to a coming war leaves questions about whether the Trump administration is gearing up for some form of military action against North Korea, which has ratcheted up both its belligerent rhetoric and nuclear weapons tests in recent months.

The oblique comment isn’t the first time Trump has teased the American public to “stay tuned” for major developments coming out of the White House. When asked during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month whether or not he intended to remain committed to the Iran nuclear deal, Trump told reporters, “You’ll see very soon. You’ll be seeing very soon.”