US EditionTrump Makes Pearl Harbor Remark in Meeting with Japan's PM
- On Thursday, March 19, 2026, President Donald Trump joked about the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack during an Oval Office meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, asking a reporter, "Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor?"
- Trump defended his decision to withhold advance notice of U.S. airstrikes in Iran from allies, asking the reporter, "Who knows better about surprise than Japan?" while justifying the lack of warning.
- Visibly uncomfortable, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi widened her eyes during the exchange, while commentators criticized the president for reviving a painful historical chapter so casually.
- Attempting to maintain diplomatic ties, Takaichi later praised Trump at a White House dinner Thursday evening, insisting the two leaders were "best buddies."
- The Daily Show host Jordan Klepper mocked the viral moment, while scholars warned the comment risked harming the U.S.-Japan alliance, which has remained strong since the Second World War.
62 Articles
62 Articles
Maher shrugs off Trump’s Pearl Harbor joke: ‘You’d laugh’ if a comedian said it
Comedian Bill Maher on Friday brushed off President Trump’s ribbing of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about Pearl Harbor amid the ongoing U.S. military operation in Iran. “He was in the Oval Office yesterday with the prime minister of Japan … and he was talking about our strike in Iran,” Maher said on his “Real…
By explaining that he had wanted to take advantage of a surprise effect to attack Iran, the US president made a questionable comparison with the Japanese army raid in 1941. An astounding projection that breaks a taboo, and clears Tokyo.
How Trump’s ‘careless’ Pearl Harbour joke in Oval Office shook eighty years of US-Japan diplomacy
US News: Donald Trump's recent joke about Pearl Harbour during a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister has raised eyebrows and sparked discussions about the historical sensitivities that underpin US-Japan diplomatic relations. This incident could potentially impact decades of carefully cultivated bilateral cooperation.
Bill Maher Defends Trump Pearl Harbor Joke — Because ‘If Shane Gillis Said It You’d Laugh!’
Comedian and pundit Bill Maher defended President Donald Trump’s joke about Pearl Harbor as funny, saying it wasn’t right to say ” but if Shane Gillis said it you’d laugh!” On Friday night’s edition of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher, the interview guest was Tristan Harris, co-founder of The Center for Humane Technology, who was recently featured in the documentary film “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist.” The panel guests were Paul …
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