You’re So Vain, You Change the Name Strait of Hormuz to Strait of Trump

Sep 8, 2026 11:45 AM EDT, Tue

Trump doubles down on idea of making Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory

If you voted for the Republican ticket because it promised a restrained foreign policy, I have some bad news for you.

Aug. 17, 2026, 3:50 PM EDT By Steve Benen

Donald Trump has invested an enormous amount of time and energy lately trying to convince people that the United States controls the Strait of Hormuz. In reality, the U.S. most certainly does not control the Strait of Hormuz, but the American president spent much of last week insisting on the delusion for reasons he never explained.

At one point last week, the Republican added a twist to the truly bizarre rhetorical campaign, posting an item to his social media platform that read in part, “The U.S.A. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT! … Praise be to Allah!”

The idea that the U.S. will somehow “keep” the body of water didn’t make a lot of sense, but as last week neared its end, Trump elaborated on the proposition during an event in New York.

“[A]fter we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated, pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” Trump said.

During an unrelated White House event this week, a reporter asked the president to elaborate on this apparent plan. He said making the strait a U.S. territory is “a great idea,” before again falsely claiming that the waterway is currently “open” and controlled by U.S. forces. Trump added, “I like the idea of declaring it a territory.”

There’s no reason to believe the administration will seriously pursue such a goal. For that matter, no one seems to have any idea how the administration would even try to pursue such a goal.

But Trump’s rhetoric stood out in large part because of the scope of his imperialistic ambitions. He’s already treating Venezuela like a colony like a colony, and the Republican has announced his desire to annex Canada, Greenland, the Panama Canal and the Gaza Strip. For good measure, let’s not forget the American president has even spoken publicly about possibly returning U.S. troops to Afghanistan.

If you voted for the GOP ticket because you were moved by Trump’s vows of a foreign policy rooted in restraint and non-interventionism, I have some bad news for you.

Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.”

Carly Simon - You’re So Vain

Jan 17, 2012 Music video by Carly Simon performing You’re So Vain. (C) 2011 Iris Records

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