When you are president of the United States, your words matter. And President Trump’s poor choice of words in relation to Iraq last Sunday are now a major problem for U.S. strategic interests in the Middle East.

The problem arose when Trump was asked by CBS News why he is retaining a U.S. military presence in Iraq. Referencing the U.S. base at al-Asad in Iraq’s western Anbar province, Trump explained, “I want to be looking a little bit at Iran, because Iran is a real problem.”