Poor performance in Wednesday's speech, dissatisfaction with media coverage, and frustration over the consequences of the war! Trump is considering a "massive overhaul" of the cabinet.

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The political costs of the Iran war continue to accumulate. The Trump administration is now facing the most severe internal stress test since the start of this term. A fresh cabinet shake-up is already starting to take shape.

According to media reports on the 5th citing five people familiar with the matter, Trump is considering pushing for a broader cabinet reshuffle after removing Attorney General Barron d’—after he is removed this week. The media quoted insiders as saying that Director of National Intelligence Gabbard and Commerce Secretary Lutnik are both at potential risk of being dismissed. A White House spokesperson promptly made a public statement saying that Trump has “full trust” in both of them.

The immediate trigger for this reshuffle discussion is Trump’s nationwide television address on April 1. Several White House officials privately believe the speech was “not effective”—it failed to provide an exit for the war and failed to respond to voters’ economic anxiety.

The latest Reuters poll shows Trump’s overall approval rating has fallen to the lowest level of this term, at 36%, with six in ten respondents opposing the U.S. and Israel launching this war.

Another point worth noting is that at a key moment—during the 48-hour ultimatum countdown against Iran and the disappearance of a U.S. military pilot—Trump acted uncharacteristically. He canceled the weekend itinerary at Mar-a-Lago and has not appeared publicly since Wednesday. The White House said he is “working nonstop” in the Oval Office. Although he has remained tough on social media, his silence on the search-and-rescue progress has sparked widespread speculation about the U.S.’s military action and negotiation strategy.

The speech fell short of expectations, and talks of a cabinet reshuffle suddenly heated up

According to reports, Trump and his speechwriting team and key advisers jointly prepared the Wednesday prime-time address. Previously, aides had repeatedly urged him to speak directly to the public about the U.S.’s role in the Iran war. However, the outcome of the speech disappointed the White House.

“One speech didn’t achieve the expected effect,” said a White House official. In the speech, Trump neither provided any exit path for the war that started on February 28 and has continued for five weeks, nor addressed voters’ economic concerns head-on. He only said the associated pain was “brief,” and pinned the blame on Tehran.

A senior White House official described the speech as an attempt “to show a sense of control over and confidence in where the war is headed,” but the result backfired, further strengthening the view that the White House needs to adjust its information strategy or personnel arrangements. “Is a take-action-style reshuffle not a good thing?” another White House official said.

Citing people familiar with the matter, the media reported that Trump is currently extremely dissatisfied with media coverage of the Iran war. He has made it clear to his team that he wants to receive more positive coverage, but he has not indicated any intention to adjust his own public relations strategy.

Gabbard and Lutnik face mounting pressure, and the White House denies the rumors of dismissal

According to reports, after Barron d’ and the Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were removed in succession, Gabbard and Lutnik were named by multiple people familiar with the matter as potential candidates for the next round of departures.

As for Gabbard, a senior White House official said Trump has repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with her in recent months; another person directly familiar with the matter said Trump has asked allies for their views on potential replacements.

It is worth noting that Gabbard is a well-known figure who has long opposed U.S. overseas military interventions. Last June, she released a video criticizing “war merchants among political elites.” At that time, it was on the eve of Trump launching the first round of military action against Iran, and this move made the White House deeply unhappy.

As for Lutnik, multiple external allies of Trump are privately pushing for his removal. Some of the pressure stems from continuing exposures of his relationship with Epstein. Documents made public earlier this year showed that Lutnik had lunch with Epstein in 2012 on Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean. Lutnik himself responded that he had “almost no contact” with Epstein, and that that lunch only happened because he had been passing by nearby by boat at the time. In fact, according to reports, some of Trump’s allies had already pushed to remove Lutnik as far back as after last April’s confusion over global tariff policy.

In a statement, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said Trump maintains “full trust” in Gabbard and Lutnik and added that they “achieved historic victories together for the American people.”

“Barron d’ won’t be the last,” and the timing of the reshuffle may be decided before the midterm elections

Although the White House publicly denied it, citing multiple people familiar with the matter, the media said that in recent weeks the seriousness of reshuffle discussions has clearly increased. A senior White House source said Trump wants to complete major personnel changes within a window that still leaves enough time before the midterm elections in mid-November. “So to speak, based on what I’ve heard, Barron d’ won’t be the last,” another White House official said.

However, Trump may ultimately choose to stand pat. Multiple people familiar with the matter pointed out that given how frequent personnel changes in his first term had dominated public opinion and created the impression of a chaotic White House, Trump has clear reservations about replacing the Cabinet too often. A White House official said the anticipated changes would be “targeted substitutions,” rather than a “large-scale, dramatic reshuffle.”

Still, some believe that standing still at this time also carries political risk. Data show that the Iran war has pushed up oil prices, hurt Trump’s approval ratings, and increased the concerns of Republicans on the road to the midterm elections. “Voters can tolerate rhetoric at the ideological level, but rising oil prices are a direct, immediate experience for them,” a White House official said.