On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced on social media, “Effective IMMEDIATELY, I have ordered the United States Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to provide, at a very reasonable price, political risk insurance and guarantees for the Financial Security of ALL Maritime Trade, especially Energy, traveling through the Gulf.”

In a new blog post, Cato Institute policy analyst Tad DeHaven examines President Trump’s announcement that the United States Development Finance Corporation will provide political risk insurance for maritime trade moving through the Gulf following the collapse of shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Trump’s declarations routinely begin as sweeping assertions of personal control that immediately cause one to ask, ‘Can he do that?’” writes DeHaven. “That fundamental question then spawns a stream of additional questions as his subordinates maneuver to piece together something that resembles the president’s dream.”

DeHaven argues the proposal fits a broader pattern in which expansive presidential claims are followed by hurried attempts inside the administration to construct something legally workable.

To speak with DeHaven on this topic, feel free to reach out to Emily at esalamon@​cato.​org