When the operation began, the Houthis were explicitly targeting Israel as well as Israeli-linked ships—though not U.S. ships—and saying they would continue to do so until Israel ends its war in Gaza.

For anyone who has wondered what an “America First” foreign policy looks like, Donald Trump provided a vivid example today when he declared a cease-fire with the Houthis, the Yemeni militia that has been under U.S. bombardment for the past seven weeks.

The president needs to avoid getting sucked into the same dynamic that led Barack Obama to forge the desperately flawed 2015 Iran nuclear accords.