With a full year of President Donald Trump’s second term in the books, where does the Republican Party go after Trump? What is the process after a president decides to go into battle and how does any president sleep at night? A regular guest on CNN and a former senior Trump advisor, David Urban provides his behind-the-scenes insights for the first installment in our new section, NSide Politics.

When a president decides to go to war, how specifically is that decision implemented?

DAVID URBAN: In most instances, the U.S. Military has contingency plans on the shelf that say how many C-17 [aircrafts] we’re going to need, whether the 82nd Airborne Division will be sent, how many boats we need, how many aircraft, and how we can get them there. I am sure in each of these instances—with Venezuela and Iran—that the Department of Defense had packages saying what we need to do. The president says, ‘Give me options,’ and the National Security Council, the Joint Chiefs of8 Staff and Department of Defense would be involved in giving the president their best advice on what is needed. Ultimately it’s up to the president. He’s got great discretion under Article 2 [of the Constitution] in exercising his authority overseas and his power to use the military overseas. It’s almost unlimited.

Decades ago, Trump mentioned the Iranian threat. Is this something he’s had in his mind for years that Iran had to be dealt with?

URBAN: If you go back and watch Donald Trump being interviewed by Larry King or Oprah Winfrey, and you listen to President Trump today, it sounds almost like the same guy from the same speech, whether it’s trade, tariffs or Iran. Trump has had the same beliefs and views for quite some time. There are certain things that stick in his mind. He’s nota guy who takes a poll and sticks his finger in the wind; he believes in what he believes in.

There are people who suggest we’re fighting Israel’s war. Is it possible that Israel talked Trump into this?

URBAN: I don’t think Israel talked him into anything. The notion that anyone talks Donald Trump into anything is ludicrous. Netanyahu may have said, ‘We know that all of these individuals are going to be in this one place and this is a very rare opportunity.’ Our intelligence could have agreed that this is a rare opportunity and that if we want to do it, it’s best to do it now. Are those things possible? 100%. There’s a timing issue where we thought we could decapitate the regime. Whether you like Donald Trump or not, at some point, some president was going to have to act.

When things go south, what is theatmosphere at the White House like?

URBAN: The atmosphere is very somber anytime an American serviceman or woman comes home and there’s a dignified transfer of remains. Everybody involved is reminded of the incredibly realistic terms [of military casualties]. The toppling of the Iranian regime is a different kind of mood in the White House. That’s what they’re there for, to flex and bend. We have a lot of smart people who are dedicated and working in this building that you don’t see—those are professionals at work. There is an air of professionalism among a great deal of people working behind the scenes. The mood is always serious when we’re engaged overseas; the bad is when bodies come home.

How do you think the situation in Iran willimpact the Midterm Elections?

URBAN: If you look at polling, people don’t care about the war. What people care about is the economy. The question is how this conflict impacts the economy and what that means to voters. Gas prices are going up, fertilizer prices are going up, and at some point those prices are going to spike. Gas prices are high, but they were also high during the Biden Administration. There’s still a lot to be determined. Is this a one-month conflict or a six-month conflict? If we’re talking about this in September, it will have a huge impact on how things will play out.

I find it hard to believe we will still be engaged in this conflict with Iran past the date [of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in May]. I don’t think Trump would want to meet with Xi and have an outstanding issue. Everybody knows the Chinese government would love to stroll across the sea and take Taiwan. There will be a lot of questions around, ‘If we can attack Iran then why can’t Xi take Taiwan?’ There will be parallels and it will be awkward because I believe China is providing material support for Iran currently

Any president lives under constant pressure. How do they sleep at night?

URBAN: That’s why when Obama went into office he looked like he was 40, and by the time he left he looked like his own grandfather. That’s why you see Trump posting on Truth Social at 3 a.m. Presidents sleep very little. I don’t think you can be president if you’re somebody that sleeps a lot. It takes a great physical toll, because at the end of the day, [the president] is responsible for everything. Even things you’re not responsible for, you’re now responsible for. That’s why Trump plays golf, and why Obama played basketball. You’ve got to be able to blow off some steam every once in awhile, otherwise you lose your mind.

Trump watches the news quite a bit. How much is he influenced by the news?

URBAN: He is a guy who is influenced, incensed and informed by the news. He also understands television, he gets the media. I don’t think there’s been a more media accessible president. He’s informed when he sees something that doesn’t look good on television or reflect well on his administration. He understands the media and its impact on the American people.

We have never seen a president put his stamp on so many things, now with the $100 bill. What is the explanation?

URBAN: With the $100 bill, I’m sure a secretary came to him saying, ‘Let’s do this.’ Donald Trump is not shy, he’s a marketing guy. He made money not by building buildings but by marketing the Trump brand. I challenge even Trump’s haters to go to a Trump hotel, and they are world-class facilities. The branding is something he’s done his entire life. People think it’s unseemly, and to a certain extent you can argue that it is. Every president can decorate the Oval Office the way they want to do it. Do I think there are too many gold cherubs? Probably. But the next president gets to come in and decorate however they want.

Do you think Trump is satisfied with how things have gone in his second term?

URBAN: I think the first 100 days were incredibly satisfying. You take an issue like immigration where Trump was 80% popular, and most people were happy, and then we started deporting folks in perhaps an improper way that led to two American citizens to be killed. When that plays out on national TV, Trump’s support [on immigration] goes from 80% to 20%. I don’t think the president can be happy with that. I don’t think he’s happy with the state of the economy.

Marco Rubio or JD Vance?

URBAN: Maybe neither. The president may throw up his hands and say we’re having an open primary. President Trump likes both individuals, but maybe he says he’s not going to pick his successor. Maybe he wants an open primary to let the American people pick, and if that’s the case, then you’re going to see Nikki Haley, Glenn Youngkin, Ron DeSantis. You’re going to see a wide range of people